Frost and snow deal blow to Turkey’s biggest export crops

• Hazelnuts and apricots hard hit
• Temperatures fell to -15C
• Domestic food prices set to spike

Turkey’s agriculture sector is reeling after much of the country was struck by hard frosts last week, damaging vital crops such as hazelnuts and apricots and jeopardising export income. 

Temperatures plunged between April 10 and 12, with lows of -15C in some regions. More than a third of Turkey’s 81 provinces had frosts and snowfall.

The extreme weather was described as the worst frost in three decades. It stretched from the southeast, near Turkey’s borders with Iraq and Syria, to the northern Black Sea coastal strip and along much of the western coastal provinces, all important agricultural areas.

One of the worst-affected crops is hazelnuts, Turkey’s largest single agriculture export, which generates revenues of more than $2 billion a year.

Turkey is the world’s largest hazelnut producer, meeting three quarters of international demand. Much of the crop is used in chocolate production.

“We were faced with frost, snowfall and hail due to sudden falls in air temperatures,” agriculture minister Ibrahim Yumaklı posted on social media over the weekend.

“As a result of these adverse weather conditions, we unfortunately experienced one of the biggest agricultural frost events in our history.”

Even before the frosts, projections were for a 10 percent fall in this year’s harvest. The recent freeze could kill most of the crop, according to Hamza Bölük, president of the National Hazelnut Council.

“The damage to the crop will significantly cut Turkey’s export income and, due to a lack of supply, hazelnut prices in foreign currency terms will go up, with the potential to hit historic highs,” he told AGBI.

The damage to agricultural production centres will also lead to a sharp rise in food price inflation for Turkish consumers, Bölük said.

Another area hit hard by the frosts was Malatya, an eastern province that produces 85 percent of Turkey’s apricots. The country supplies four fifths of global dried apricot demand. 

Losses for the sector have been estimated at more than $500 million, with damage to trees that could affect next year’s harvest still being assessed. 

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Growers in the western province of Manisa, one of the country’s main grape-producing regions, reported damage to more than three quarters of vines. They have warned that there will be shortage of table grapes, dried sultanas and some wine grapes this year, along with a spike in prices. 

Assessments are still being conducted, but there are also reports of extensive losses of potatoes, ornamental flowers, walnuts and almonds. Early-season plantings of sunflowers, Turkey’s main source of vegetable oil, have been damaged too, although these seedlings can be replaced with new plantings. 

Last month, sharp frosts in agricultural districts in Turkey’s south wrought havoc on citrus production, with some regions reporting losses of up to 80 percent.

Long-term damage to plantations was adding to the problems of an industry already struggling with climate change. Temperatures fell well below zero in normally temperate areas over a series of nights in late February and early March.