Apricot harvest in the rubble city: Sold for 20 TL domestically and 25 TL internationally from the field

With the start of the apricot harvest in the fertile lands of Hatay, the product is sold to foreign countries for 25 TL and domestically for 20 TL per field. Spring has arrived in Hatay, one of Turkey’s fertile lands, marking the beginning of harvest season for many agricultural products. The apricot harvest continues in Antakya district of Hatay, a leading city in agriculture. Mustafa Sürmeli, a farmer harvesting apricots on a 120-acre land, stated that the yield is good in his 7,500-tree orchard and the product is sold domestically for 20 TL and to foreign countries for 25 TL. Expressing satisfaction with the harvest, Mustafa Sürmeli mentioned that prices have remained the same compared to last year, despite the good yield. He stated, ‘The yield is quite good, but we are a bit concerned about the prices. While production costs have doubled, keeping the prices the same is causing some difficulty for us. Currently, export-grade apricots are sold to foreign countries for 25 TL, while domestically they range from 15 TL to 20 TL. The harvest is good in terms of yield. It varies depending on the variety. Trees that undergo cold treatment in the apricot orchard yield very well. When cold treatment is not applied, the harvest is poor.’
Claiming that this year’s apricot harvest is much better than last year, worker Mazlum Karakeçili stated that their daily wages are 600 TL. He said, ‘This year, the products in the orchard are not abundant. The apricot harvest is much better than last year. The difficulty of apricot harvest requires us to start work very early. There is a distance difference from where we left off.’