Elazig Red Meat Producers Association President Mehmet Çiçek said that many producers have withdrawn from the sector due to increasing costs and especially feed prices, and this will lead to a serious meat and milk crisis. Mehmet Cicek made the following evaluations:
"Especially pandemic, drought, Ukraine-Russiawar; caused a food crisis in the world and this food crisis continues. Especially due to the pandemic, the energy shortage in the world has greatly affected agricultural products. Inputs of agricultural products increased 3-4 times. Then came the drought. This year, a crisis arose in the world due to Russia and Ukraine, which constitute 20-30 percent of agricultural production. Because of this crisis, feed prices have increased. Due to the increase in feed prices, dairy farmers sent their cows to slaughter. There is a shortage of milk in the market right now, there is a shortage of calves because it is sent to slaughter.
Our President announced barley prices of 6 thousand and 6 thousand 200 TL during the harvest period. Today, 1 bag of feed is 300 TL in Agricultural Credit Cooperatives. 320-330 TL in the private market. I'm calling right now. There are thousands of agricultural engineers and veterinarians in Turkey, I call out to all of them; In an environment where 1 bag of feed is 310-320 TL, 1 kilogram of barley costs 6-6 and a half TL, in an environment where the cost of one kilogram of meat is 115 TL and the cost of 1 kilogram of milk is 8-9 TL, the political authority has reduced meat in Agricultural Credit Cooperatives. We support all efforts to reduce inflation. But you also have to think about the manufacturer. Urgently… The Meat and Dairy Institution should make a price improvement and not make the breeders and milk producers victims. Because the breeder is slowly withdrawing from the sector.
"THE MEAT AND MILK WILL BE BLESSED"
As a result of the decrease in the price of meat from 105 liras to 94-95-96 TL in 10 days today, a panic has started among the breeders, people are taking their animals that have not completed their fattening to slaughter, and what does this indicate? It is probable that there will be a shortage of meat and milk in the market in the first months of 2023. He will now bring ready-made meat and ready-made milk from outside and feed this nation. The Ministry urgently needs to activate the Soil Crop Office, cheap barley for the breeders, Agricultural Credit Cooperatives, cheap feed for the breeders, and the Meat and Dairy Institution to give a price and not make the producers victims. Otherwise, a great danger awaits Turkey in terms of meat and milk in the future.
"AGRICULTURAL CREDIT COOPERATIVES CAUSED UNFAIR COMPETITION"
Çiçek stated that the prices of agricultural products will also be high due to the high input costs unless the prices of diesel, fertilizer and electricity decrease in Turkey, and stated that the Agricultural Credit Cooperative markets create an unfair competition environment by affecting both butchers and breeders. Expressing that the state should take urgent measures, Çiçek continued his speech as follows:
Reducing the weight of meat partially in such markets now may provide some comfort in the short term. But in the long run, Turkey is faced with great dangers, and we expect urgent interventions from the state," he said.