Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli delivered a speech at the 69th Traditional Harvest Festival held by the General Directorate of Agricultural Enterprises (TIGEM).
Mentioning that the Harvest Festival was of great importance for all the people who did agriculture since it became the symbol of sharing the enthusiasm of harvest and abundance, the sweat of the brow in agriculture, all the effort expended on soil, all the seeds planted, and all the prayers said, Minister Pakdemirli said: "This festival symbolizes all of these values in the presence of TİGEM, who is the largest farmer in Turkey. The 69th Traditional Harvest Festival is actually reaping the fruits of the annual labour."
SEED EXPORT HAS BEEN MORE THAN 20 TIMES LARGER THAN PREVIOUS YEARS
Underlining the importance of TİGEM, the largest farmer family of Turkey, Minister Pakdemirli stated that they realized an effective financial management in a very short time, and experienced a significant recovery in bank interest payments as well. "With the new price policy, compared to previous years, seed export has been more than 20 times larger in the last 6 months," he said.
Recalling that Ceylanpınar Facility which comprised 50% of the lands and 65% of the endorsement, underwent a serious revision on the problematic points, Pakdemirli said, "When a successful harvest season was also added to this recovery, we also managed to provide a fertile environment for new projects. In 2019, we achieved an improvement of more than 10 times in profitability compared to 2018. Our main goal here is to bring TİGEM to a level that will provide better service to the farmers and become content with its own resources with the principle of Sustainability."
ELECTRIC TRACTOR DIESEL COSTS WILL REDUCE MORE THAN 90%
Within the scope of the 69th Harvest Festival, domestic agricultural technologies, especially electric tractors, were showcased. Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Pakdemirli pointed out that such a wide area was brought together with Technology and R&D. "Being the first in the world and in Turkey, our electric tractors of which software and design is local and national, will decrease diesel costs more than 90%. Our Smart Ear Tag System will ensure effective planning and productivity. Our products in the scope of other national and local production projects such as "Ancestor Seed" and "Domestic Vegetable Seed" have been showcased here," he said.
WE ARE ADVANCING ON THE WAY TO BE THE LEADING COUNTRY IN LIVESTOCK
"Diesel oil problem of our farmers and producers will become history thanks to the Local Electric Tractor Project and thanks to the domestic and national Smart Ear Tag System for our large and small livestock, introduced within the scope of the Harvest Festival, Current Location Information, Rut Season Tracking, Professional Herd Management, Effective Fight Against Epidemic Diseases, 100% Registration System will all be monitored anywhere any time," Minister Pakdemirli said.
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS EXPORTS JUMPED OVER 10% OF TOTAL EXPORT
Minister Pakdemirli emphasized that the agricultural products exports of our country jumped over 10% of the total export and that our export became a determining factor. "Our agricultural productivity, has increased far above the world average over the last 15 years, including last year. We will continue to strengthen our position as a net exporter in agriculture and food in the next period of 11th Development Plan."
THE TARGET IS TOP 5 WITH AN AGRICULTURAL FORESTRY PRODUCT OF 100 BILLION DOLLARS
In his speech, Minister Pakdemirli also drew attention to the 3rd Agriculture Council, which was held after 15 years, for determining a road map that would encompass the next 25 years in agriculture and forestry. "During 3 months, we will consult with our farmers, producers and sector stakeholders and let them guide us in business and operation. At the end of the process, we aim to add our country to the top 5 agricultural economies of the world with 100 Billion dollars of agricultural forestry product. As I always say, farmers and producers are our finest guides," he said.