Experts stress the need to take precautions against the possibility of irregular rainfall and drought negatively affecting wheat production and to pay more attention to climate-friendly practices and digitalization in agriculture.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the wheat and wheat-based food industry is becoming increasingly competitive both in the domestic and global markets, while drought is one of the main factors preventing an increase in production.

Commenting on the effects of climate change on wheat production, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Agriculture Specialist Fazıl Düşünceli said that in addition to the increase in input prices such as fertilizer and energy, frequent dry seasons and irregular rainfall during the season pose an important problem for farmers.

Emphasizing that wheat production should not be based on one-year data, Düşünceli said, "Long-term thinking should be considered and wheat production should be done within the scope of a production system. Other crops should also be included in the system of alternation (crop rotation, an agricultural method that refers to the planting of different plants one after the other in an orderly manner). Especially the contribution of legumes and fodder crops to production will both increase productivity and minimize the risks arising from production and climate."

Pointing out that wheat cultivation areas in Türkiye have decreased from 8 million hectares to 7 million hectares in the last 10 years, Düşünceli commented that this may have been due to socioeconomic reasons, farmers' preference for more income-generating products and the transition of some of the producers with irrigation facilities to corn cultivation in irrigated agriculture.

"Rainfall in spring will be decisive in wheat yield"

Stating that there was a serious drought in different parts of Central Anatolia due to the lower than expected snowfall in the winter months and the amount of precipitation in the coming spring period will be decisive for wheat production, Düşünceli said:

"If we consider Türkiye in general, our luck is that we have very diverse geographies. If there is a problem in one region, it can be compensated from other regions. For the moment, I do not foresee a panic mood, but I think it is necessary to follow the coming weeks and months well, observe both the rainfall and the development of the product in the field and take measures accordingly."

In line with the information they obtained from the producers, Düşünceli stated that 43 percent of their expenditures consisted of fertilizer, 22 percent of irrigation, 11 percent of planting and 6 percent of harvesting costs, and underlined that the conservation agriculture method, which aims to protect natural resources and the environment, focuses on efficiency and reduces costs in some items.

Fazıl Düşünceli said the following:

"Conservation agriculture is one of the methods that reduces, replaces or completely eliminates tillage. You sow the seed directly into the soil without tillage and you get the same product from that land as you would normally. If you direct sow, you then avoid tillage costs. If direct sowing can be made widespread, I think it will provide a significant gain in terms of increasing productivity, preventing soil erosion and saving energy."

Düşünceli advised farmers to prefer drought-resistant varieties developed by Research Institutes that are suitable for the conditions of their regions and especially for changing climatic conditions.

 

"Digitalization should be utilized more"

FAO Deputy Representative in Türkiye Dr. Ayşegül Selışık said that within the scope of the Development Contingency Modality of the UN Common Fund for Sustainable Development Goals Common Fund for Sustainable Development Goals, they implemented the 'Supply Chain Analysis for the Turkish Wheat Sector' project to analyse Türkiye's wheat sector, which is an important actor in global wheat production and trade, and to create a more resilient food system: Building a Resilient Food System' project and organized workshops in Gaziantep and Tekirdağ.

Stating that the project, which is financed by the UN Joint Fund for Sustainable Development, was developed in cooperation with FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Program (WFP) and carried out jointly with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Selışık said that as a result of these workshops, they concluded that Türkiye would be a country of opportunities in both flour and pasta industry.

Stating that farmers are concerned about drought in line with the studies and observations made within the scope of the project and she thinks that carrying this concern will be useful in producing new solutions, Selışık said: "We now need to be able to apply climate-friendly agricultural methods and switch to controlled irrigation. It is important that drought-resistant wheat or other seeds are introduced to more farmers and that agriculture benefits more from the world of digitalization."

Selışık added that the report to be prepared as a result of field interviews with the components of the wheat sector within the scope of the project will take a picture of the sector, and a road map will be created for the sector to become more resilient in the light of the policy recommendations to be made.

"The value of the product should be increased with marketing strategies"

Erdoğan Güneş, Professor at Ankara University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Economics, said that cereals are one of the leading sectors in terms of employment, added value, production and exports, adding that raw materials are grown all around and the important thing is to improve the quality of raw materials.

​​​​​​​Güneş noted that there is a loss of around 8-10 percent in the process from wheat production to consumption, this loss occurs at different stages of production such as storage, transportation and processing, and that solutions should be sought to minimize this waste.

Explaining that wheat producers preserve the traditional structure but use more modern systems in large areas, Güneş underlined that the biggest obstacle to using agricultural practices will reduce the use of water and electricity is the high initial investment costs, but once these systems are installed, the systems will protect both the environment and the farmer's budget.

Güneş said, "If you go to South Korea, for example in leek production, there are systems that can both obtain environmentally friendly products and minimize electricity, that is, reduce costs, by using solar energy. We need to follow these."

 

Reminding that Türkiye is the world leader in flour and pasta exports, Güneş emphasized that it is important to increase the value of the product by developing marketing strategies at this stage.

 

Source: Anadolu Ajansı