Turkey’s citrus exports increased by 24% compared with the previous year in 2020, topping $933 million (TL 6.8 billion) in value, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported on Sunday.
According to the information gathered from Mediterranean Exporter Associations (AKIB) data, Turkey exported 1.8 million tons of citrus last year.
Turkey’s most exported products were mandarins, lemons, oranges and grapefruit.
Russia took the lead with $410 million worth of imports from Turkey, followed by Iraq with $106 million, Ukraine with $99 million, Romania with $39 million and Poland with $35 million.
The president of the National Citrus Council, Kemal Kaçmaz, told AA that citrus is very important in terms of Turkey’s vegetable and fruit exports.
Saying that they have contributed significantly to the Turkish economy despite the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Kaçmaz also added that some very important developments happened in citrus exports last year.
“We exported 1.8 million tons of citrus worth $933 million. Such a contribution to the Turkish economy is gratifying,” he said.
Kaçmaz also said they are actively pursuing new markets and new developments for the industry are on the horizon.
