The harvest has begun in Ahlat, one of Turkey’s potato warehouses.

The harvest of table and seed potatoes has begun in the Ahlat district of Bitlis, one of Turkey’s potato warehouses. The potatoes produced in the rich and vast agricultural lands of Ahlat meet 4% of Turkey’s potato needs, ranking 9th in the country.

This year, a harvest of 200,000 tons of table potatoes is expected from an area of 56,000 decares in Ahlat. Bitlis Governor Ahmet Karakaya participated in the potato harvest by visiting Halil Süleymanoğlu’s potato field in Ahlat. He chatted with the agricultural workers harvesting in the field and wished them ease, while also participating in the harvest by collecting potatoes. In a statement to reporters, Bitlis Governor Ahmet Karakaya said, ‘Potatoes are among the most consumed products in every household. This year is a fruitful season. We wanted to share in the anxiety of our farmers by participating in the potato harvest here. We wanted to see this work on the ground. We are always by our farmers’ side. Agriculture is a very strategic sector. If agriculture is not done sufficiently, successes in other areas will remain incomplete. Therefore, we are doing our utmost to promote agriculture and livestock, which supports all sectors in our city and our country. All the policies of our governments are in this direction. God willing, much more advanced moves will be made by our state and our governments in agriculture, technology, science, art, and culture. As Bitlis, we will keep pace with this and support these efforts for the development and growth of our city as much as we can,’ he said.

Expressing that Ahlat has a completely different meaning, Governor Karakaya continued, ‘We are currently in Ahlat. Ahlat has a completely different significance. As everyone knows, Ahlat is a district where our first seal in Anatolia is located, a city known as Kubbet’ül İslam, which has been the apple of our country’s eye for a thousand years. The conduct of these activities here is also particularly meaningful. Ahlat and Bitlis have a production of about 350,000 tons. In this context, we strive to plan this in the best way possible to reach consumers from producers. I wish ease to my dear brothers working here. God willing, we will all strive together to achieve better results in agriculture, just like in every sector. Today, we came to see this beautiful harvest on-site with our district governor, our provincial agriculture director, our Agricultural Chamber president, and our esteemed friends,’ he said.

During Governor Karakaya’s visit, he was accompanied by Ahlat District Governor Batuhan Bingöl, Provincial Police Chief Ortaç Şekeroğlu, General Secretary of Bitlis Special Administration Adem Aydoğdu, Bitlis Agriculture and Forestry Director Ramazan Çolak, Ahlat Agricultural Chamber President Necat Demirden, Ahlat District Agriculture and Forestry Director Nihat Keskin, AK Party Ahlat District President Mesut Subaşı, and some department heads.