Ahmet Güldal, the General Manager of the Turkish Grain Board (TMO), highlighted a prosperous harvest in 2023. Güldal noted that the TMO acquired 11.273 billion tons of barley and wheat this year.

The Istanbul Commodity Exchange’s ‘Borsa Square Discussions’ event focused on the grain sector. Participating as a speaker, Ahmet Güldal of TMO emphasized the fruitful harvest achieved in 2023. He remarked, “We had been navigating through years of scarcity; however, we’ve been steering towards abundance in the recent past and this year.”

Güldal elaborated on the increase in cultivation areas due to revised pricing policies and incentives. “In the 2023 season, we saw wheat planting spanning over 7 million hectares. The absence of drought played a significant role in this achievement. The yield disparity between irrigated and non-irrigated lands has narrowed. This year, the TMO’s procurement of barley and wheat reached 11.273 billion tons, marking a historical milestone. I view this as a positive step for building reserves and ensuring supply stability. We anticipate robust plantings of wheat and barley coming October. The repercussions of the pandemic, conflicts, and the severe 2021 drought have subsided this year. Currently, our grain supply assurance extends beyond three years. While we’ve steered through scarcity in past years, we’re now navigating a phase of plenty.”

Güldal added that wheat imports were necessary only for both pasta and flour exports, highlighting, “Turkey, when producing between 20-21 million tons of wheat, can meet its domestic requirements without relying on imports. For instance, we imported until March this year due to drought concerns, but there was no need post-March.”