Malatya, which suffered significant damage from the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaras on February 6, managed to generate $818,965,000 in revenue from apricots.

Ramazan Özcan, President of the Malatya Commodity Exchange, mentioned that apricots have a geographical indication registration within the European Union (EU), and revenue increased alongside the rise in export figures after the earthquakes. Özcan noted that approximately 9 million of Turkey’s 22 million apricot trees are located in Malatya, supporting around 50,000 families with apricot cultivation. He stated that apricot export figures have been consistently increasing after the earthquakes, bringing smiles to the faces of farmers involved in production. “APRICOTS PLAYED A SIGNIFICANT ROLE” Özcan emphasized that Malatya went through physically challenging times during the earthquakes, stating: “Especially compared to other cities, Malatya suffered more damage in terms of commercial areas. Over 130,000 independent sections and more than 17,000 business establishments were damaged in the city. However, apricot enterprises did not suffer significant losses, and there was no severe destruction in the organized industrial zones (OIZ). On the other hand, the retail sector incurred substantial losses. If asked what is going well in the city, economically and sociologically, apricots have played a crucial role. Apricots contributed significantly to Malatya during the earthquake period.” $819 MILLION REVENUE Özcan highlighted that apricots in Malatya make significant contributions to the region, enabling thousands of families to make a living from this trade. Stressing that apricots are an important export item for the region and Turkey, Özcan concluded: “In the last 2 years, we exported 147,775 tons of apricots and obtained a total revenue of $818,965,000. Apricots continue to be both an economic income source and the livelihood of 50,000 families sociologically. When you look at Turkey’s agricultural product exports, the importance of apricots as a product emerges once again. Additionally, we also generate income from apricot kernels. We exported a total of 7,919 tons of apricot kernels and generated $30,506,000 in revenue.”