Pasta is a healthy basic food that is affordable to everyone in all societies, is delicious, satisfying, practical and easy to cook/prepare, and provides satiety for a long time. It is quite natural because it contains only semolina obtained from durum wheat and water. Contrary to the erroneous perception in some parts of society, pasta does not fatten you up providing cooked and consumed correctly.  

Pasta production consists of very simple steps: The dough obtained by mixing semolina and water is shaped and then dried. The demand for pasta, which is the most important good after bread among the foods obtained from wheat in terms of production amount and its importance in nutrition, continues to increase through the years. 

In this increase, we can say that besides being healthy and nutritious, the fact that pasta can be stored for a long time without spoiling, can be consumed in different varieties and forms, can be prepared quickly and easily, and is an affordable foodstuff is extremely effective. 

Pasta produced from durum wheat is in the class of complex carbohydrate foods due to the characteristics of carbohydrates it contains. Complex carbohydrates are digested slowly, raising blood sugar gradually. Therefore, pasta produced from durum wheat is one of the foods with the lowest glycemic index (GI). After consumption, it does not cause "hunger pangs" and does not give a feeling of hunger, it keeps you full for a long time.

Pasta produced with durum wheat does not stick, does not get doughy and is a healthy meal separately.

Coloring materials are not used in pasta produced from durum wheat, because carotenoids and pigments naturally found in durum wheat give the pasta its characteristic yellow color. These substances also act as antioxidants.

In Turkey, in line with the relevant communiqué of our Ministry in force and the pasta standard of TSE (Turkish Standards Institute), pasta is officially defined as “a product obtained by adding water to semolina produced with Triticum durum wheat and kneading in accordance with its technique, shaping and drying the dough”. Within this framework, pasta is produced and offered to our consumers only with durum wheat in our country. 

When pasta is produced with bread wheat instead of durum wheat, there will be significant changes in nutritional properties and quality: its stability and durability decrease, its color turns from yellow to white, and its glycemic index increases. Additives and food dyes are often used to make these products look like real pasta. Such practices constitute adulteration under our laws. It both misleads consumers and causes unfair competition for companies that make production by abiding by the law. 

Although pasta from bread wheat is produced and consumed in some countries in different geographies of the world for reasons such as economic concerns or traditional food habits, there is no reason for this in our country, especially in terms of consumer demand. 

As we express our opinions on this subject on every platform and at every opportunity, pasta is an extremely healthy, nutritious, delicious and organic product that is affordable to everyone. It should not be overlooked that trying to change these features for artificial reasons will not bring anything to our consumers and our industry, and it can also harm the perception of "High-Quality Turkish Pasta" that we are trying to create in the world. 

As MÜSAD, we would like to express once again that we will continue to bird-dog this illegal process regarding the use of bread wheat in pasta, both in export and domestic consumption, in order to protect our consumers, our product and our reputation. We cannot allow the future of our industry, which can only continue to grow both in exports and domestic consumption with high-quality and branded goods, to be negatively affected by such initiatives.

We know that the relevant offices, particularly the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, are working on this issue, and we support these efforts till the end.