Fig industry in Turkey: production and marketing
Turkey led fig-producing countries with 320,000 t, accounting for 23.7% of total world production in 2021. Turkey has a share of about 50-55% in dried fig production and 52-60% in fig exports.
A portion close to the total of dried fig production (85-90%) is exported.
Although the number of countries importing Turkish figs is increasing, more than 70% is sent to the EU markets.
France, Germany, United States, Belarus and Italy were the top five fig-importing countries.
An important amount of dried fig production in Turkey is carried out in Aydın province in the Aegean region of Turkey.
Aydın province and places around, where the world’s highest quality and most delicious dried figs grow, export 80% percent of dried figs to World markets, Europe in particular.
Dried fig production in Aydın is approximately about 65-70 thousand tons.
The main cultivar for drying is ‘Sarilop’ (= ‘Calimyrna’) in Turkey. ‘Sarılop’, which is favored in all fig producing countries for its quality, is grown only in the Küçük and Büyük Menderes river basins in the Aegean region in Turkey.
Both dried and fresh Turkish figs are valued worldwide for their premiere quality due mainly to their large size.
The Mediterranean shore and South-East Anatolia have especially suitable conditions for fresh fig production.
Fresh fig production in Turkey is seldom found in dedicated orchards except in the regions of Bursa, İçel (Mut), Manisa (Turgutlu-Salihli), and Hatay provinces.
Bursa province is the largest fresh fig region in Turkey with extensive fresh fig exports.
Among the fig cultivars, ‘Bursa Siyahı’ which is produced in Bursa region and one of the most preferable and the highest quality for fresh fig in the world market.
Main export markets are in Germany, Russia, the Netherlands, Austria, UK, and France. ‘Bursa Siyahı’ has distinctive features include it's amazing taste, hard flesh structure, black color, long storage life as well as its alluring shape and size. ‘Bursa Siyahi’ is one of the best quality fresh fig cultivars grown in Turkey and is exported increasingly.
Polat, A.A. (2024). Fig industry in Turkey: production and marketing. Acta Hortic. 1405, 201-208
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1405.20
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1405.20
DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1405.20
https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2024.1405.20
Ficus carica L., cultivars, production, cultivation, marketing
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