Hazelnut producers set $2 billion export target

TRABZON

The producers aim to increase export revenues in hazelnut, which is an important source of income in the Black Sea region.

While the hazelnut harvest, which started earlier this month, continues in the coastal and central areas, exporters are making their final preparations for the new season.

The Black Sea Hazelnut and Products Exporters’ Union (KFMİB) chair Hasan Osman Sabır said that they aim to export 320,000 tons of hazelnut in the 2022 season, which will start in September.
“We are 100 percent exporter of hazelnuts, we do not have any imported inputs,” Sabır said.

“We process and sell our product, which comes completely from the soil. As this income increases, it makes a positive contribution to the country’s foreign exchange balance. If we take the last 10 years as a basis, the net input made by hazelnut exports is more than the net input made by many large sectors. That’s why we know the value of our product.”
Sabır noted that there are efforts to increase Türkiye’s hazelnut exports.

“On the other hand, we are trying our best to create the necessary strategies and increase our exports even more,” he said.
“The peak of our annual hazelnut exports was 343,500 tons. If we can achieve 320,000 tons this year, I will see it as a success for the 2022 season because there is a recession in the world. We will close this year with around $2 billion of income. There was already a goal of increasing exports with the decrease in the value of the Turkish Lira. That increase continues every month.”

Noting that the export season will start slow due to the presence of old hazelnuts in the market, Sabır requested that the prices be increased according to the export market while determining the hazelnut price in the following years by increasing the direct income support to the farmers.

The new season’s products are not in demand at the moment, Sabır noted.
“At the time the price was announced, we already had 2021 prices running on the market,” he said.
“While there is a current price of around 43 liras, when a price of 52 liras was announced, the two prices must approach each other because of the free-market conditions based on the balance of supply and demand.”

Türkiye’s hazelnut exporters want to “gain superiority in global markets in comparison to other hazelnut producing countries,” he added.
“After all, if there is excess of production in the world, we have to find ways to sell more, since we have the highest production. In that price competition, we always have difficulties, especially against Azerbaijan and Georgia.”