The world's largest greenhouse (greenhouse) agriculture sector fair; Growtech 20th International Greenhouse, Agricultural Technologies and Livestock Equipment Fair hosted the panel titled "Listen to the Seed Expert". Yüksel Tohum Chairman of the Board Mehmet Yüksel, Selçuk University Faculty Member Prof. Dr. In the event where S. Ahmet Bağcı and TSÜAB and ECOSA President Yıldıray Gençer participated as speakers, it was emphasized that the Turkish seed sector, which exports seeds to more than 70 countries, is ahead of many countries, not in competition with the world, in some product groups with the great distance it has covered in 30 years. .
Growtech 24th International Greenhouse, Agricultural Technologies and Livestock Equipment Fair, held in Antalya between 27-20 November, hosts many events where the future and needs of the sector are brought to the agenda with the participation of the highest level officials and experts. At the fair, the latest developments about seeds and the seed industry were discussed in the panel called “Listen to the Seed Expert” moderated by Buket Sakmanlı Apaydın. Mehmet Yüksel, Chairman of the Board of Yüksel Tohum, and Selçuk University Faculty Member Prof. Dr. S. Ahmet Bağcı and the Seed Industrialists and Producers Sub-Union TSÜAB and ECOSA President Yıldıray Gençer attended as speakers.
LISTEN TO THE SEED FROM THE EXPERT
TSÜAB President Yıldıray Gençer, who took the first floor in the panel, gave information about the development of Turkish seeds in history. Gençer said: “During the pandemic, we saw how important the food, therefore the seed, is and that the person who has the seed actually owns the food. The Turkish seed industry is a young industry. At this point, the Turkish seed industry has written a success story in a short time. As of today, we export seeds to more than 70 countries. Although we are young, we have become competitive with countries that started 300 years before us. We have targeted 2023 million tons of seed production in 1.5 and I am sure that we will achieve this target. As we move forward with different product groups, we see that there is a need for R&D work in some product groups. The support of the state in this regard is very important. As the Turkish seed industry, we have become competitive with the world. Definitely trust the Turkish seed.”.
SEED SCHOOL IS COMING
Yıldıray Gençer, who also gave information about the Seed School, where they continue to work as the Sub-Union of Seed Industrialists and Producers (TSÜAB), said, “With the Seed School, we will convey information about seeds to all agricultural stakeholders. Unfortunately, misinformation spreads quickly in our country and we cannot prevent it. With the Seed School, we will prevent false and deformed information.”
WE COMPETE WITH THE NETHERLANDS AND ISRAEL
Yüksel Tohum Chairman of the Board Mehmet Yüksel, on the other hand, said that the Turkish seed industry, which took off after the second half of the 1980s, has come a long way in the past 30 years. Stating that the phrase “We buy the seeds from Israel and the Netherlands” was widely used 30 years ago, Yüksel said, “Now it is necessary to change this discourse. We are ahead of many countries, not in competition with the world, especially in products such as tomatoes, peppers, melons and zucchini, whose fruit can be eaten. In this case, we are not behind Israel and the Netherlands. We are even ahead of them in some segments.” Stating that Turkey is weak in breeding and advanced in seed breeding, Yüksel touched upon the issue of ancestral seeds. Yüksel said, “What we call ancestral seeds are varieties of village populations. We need to preserve them and pass them on to future generations. We can only build our future with the past,” he said.
DON'T MIX HYBRID AND GMO
Selcuk University Lecturer Prof. Dr. Ahmet Bağcı, on the other hand, touched upon the hybrid seed issue. Stating that the subject of GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) and hybrids is confused in Turkey, Prof. Dr. Bağcı said, “Every day, 750 million people in the world go to bed without eating anything. 2 billion people also face hunger. Only photosynthesis will feed such a hungry person. We owe everything we eat and drink to photosynthesis. Photosynthesis means plants. If the plant does not photosynthesize, we cannot live. As for the hybrid issue. When the word hybrid is used in cars, it sounds good, when used in the agricultural sector, people perceive it as bad. Hybrid means getting more efficiency from the unit area. They confuse hybrid with GMO. A hybrid is the progeny produced by crossing two pure lines. Let's take an example from Egypt. While you get 300-500 kilos of product per decare from a non-hybrid corn, you get a thousand tons of product per decare from a hybrid corn. Yes, the hybrid requires a lot of water and fertilizer. But if you apply the necessary cultivation techniques, you will gain a ton instead of 300 kilos per unit area. If we can't get efficiency, we will have to import that product deficit. Hybrid is natural and let's not confuse hybrid with GMO. "If we cannot produce our products at a high rate with hybrid, we will have to import the deficit," he said.
MANY ACTIVITIES ARE ORGANIZED AT THE FAIR THAT VISITORS FOLLOW WITH ATTENTION
ATSO Growtech Agriculture Innovation Awards, organized by Growtech since 2008 and held together with Antalya Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ATSO) for the last three years, found their owners at the fair. The Plant Breeding Project Market (BIPP), which was organized for the 5th time this year with the cooperation of Akdeniz University Technology Transfer Office (Akdeniz TTO), Antalya Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ATSO) and Turkey Seed Producers Association (TÜRKTOB), is home for the 3rd time. was hosted. The conference titled “The Impact of the EU Green Agreement on the Fertilizer Industry” by Metin Güneş, President of the Fertilizer Manufacturers, Importers and Exporters' Association (GUID), presented observations and clues about the transformation that the industry must go through.
Other prominent events are as follows: Growtech Agriculture, which has been bringing the most important issues of the agricultural sector to the agenda for four years. Sohbet“Global Climate Change and the Future of Agriculture” will be discussed. In the event moderated by Agriculture Writer İrfan Donat; Greenhouse Construction, Equipment and Equipment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (SERKONDER) President Halil Kozan, Pressure Irrigation Industrialists Association (BASUSAD) President Rahmi Çakarız, Selçuk University Faculty of Agriculture Lecturer Prof. Dr. Süleyman Soylu will take place as a speaker. Antalya Metropolitan Municipality Agricultural Services Department Head Seda Özel will give information about the recent works carried out by the Metropolitan Municipality with her conference titled "We are Working for Planned, Rules, Identified and Sustainable Agriculture in Antalya". A panel titled “Pandemic, Climate Change and the Importance of Seeds” will be held by TSÜAB, with Agricultural Writer Ali Ekber Yıldırım and TSÜAB and ECOSA President Yıldıray Gençer as speakers.
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