Why are prices for animal products high in Turkey?

In Turkey, not only are livestock farmers unable to make a profit, but the vast majority of our people cannot access red meat and milk due to excessive price hikes, and they line up in the dark of the morning in front of the Meat and Milk Board (ESK) to buy meat at cheaper prices. Turkey has effectively thrown in the towel, especially in red meat. And imports are being resorted to as a solution.

There are six main root causes for the excessive price increases in animal products in Turkey.

These are, respectively: cost inflation in animal husbandry, the neglect of small-scale peasant farming enterprises due to neoliberal policies, the problem of organization and the oligopolistic market, the privatization of state-owned agricultural enterprises, the excessively long marketing channel between the producer and the consumer, and the ever-increasing transportation costs.

COST INFLATION IN ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

There are many reasons for this.

First: the rapid decline of our pastures, which are the primary source of feed for small and large ruminants.

Meadows and pastures are the primary economic source for the forage needs of small and large ruminants. Our natural meadows and pastures, which were 44 million hectares in the 1940s, have fallen below 14.5 million hectares today. This decline can be attributed to the opening of our pastures to non-agricultural use, as well as the degradation of the natural vegetation due to unplanned, excessive, and early grazing, turning them into areas prone to erosion.

Second: Because our pastures are insufficient, the need for forage is met by feed crops such as corn and alfalfa obtained through irrigated farming.

Irrigated farming requires paid water and electricity. Moreover, factory feed has been prioritized in fattening and breeding. Since the raw material for factory feed is almost entirely dependent on imports (foreign currency), the production costs of meat and milk are constantly rising.

Third: Not giving enough importance to preventive medicine and excessive price increases in curative medicine.

Due to the lack of sufficient importance given to preventive medicine, lamb and kid mortality rates are between 4-21 percent, and calf mortality is at the 15 percent level. Approximately 500 thousand calves die every year. The high cost of medicine in curative veterinary care is also one of the factors triggering cost inflation.

NEGLECT OF PEASANT FARMING ENTERPRISES THROUGH NEOLIBERAL POLICIES

The neglect of small and medium-sized peasant farming enterprises based on family labor through the agricultural policies pursued, and the emphasis on corporate farming with giant agricultural enterprises through neoliberal policies implemented since the 1980s. However, this model was not suitable for Turkey. The vast majority of agricultural enterprises in Turkey were small and medium-sized enterprises. However, the support provided to them remained very insufficient. And as a result of the neglect of peasant farming, the number of animals did not increase in proportion to the total population due to the decline in the agricultural population.

THE VERY LOW LEVEL OF ECONOMIC ORGANIZATION OF FARMERS AND THE OLIGOPOLISTIC MARKET

Because the economic organization of farmers is at a very low level, small and medium-sized enterprises based on family labor have had to market their goods according to the oligopolistic market in the milk and meat sector. This market is generally shaped in Turkey under the dominance of 2, 3, or 4 players (intermediaries or buyers and sellers). An oligopoly is a market shared by a small number of dominant firms with a rate of more than 40%. Here, livestock farmers are numerous and unorganized, while milk and animal buyers are highly powerful and organized.

CLOSURE OF STATE-OWNED AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISES

Why was the Milk Industry Corporation (SEK) privatized?

With the privatization of the Milk Industry Corporation (SEK), milk purchased from the producer at a very low price began to be sold to consumers at a high price. The determination of producer milk prices came under the control of domestic and foreign industrialists.

YEMSAN was privatized and the farmer was left to the mercy of private feed factories.

EBK was transformed into ESK and rendered dysfunctional.

The Meat and Fish Institution (EBK) was transformed into the Meat and Milk Board (ESK). However, just as it largely sold off the institutions it held, its intervention in the market has become almost non-existent today.

TİGEMs were sidelined.

Many Agricultural Enterprises (Tİ) affiliated with the General Directorate of Agricultural Enterprises (TİGEM) were disposed of by being leased for 30 years. As a result, the Turkish farmer was made dependent on foreign sources and monopoly capital for breeding animals and certified seeds.

THE MARKETING CHANNEL BETWEEN PRODUCER AND CONSUMER IS TOO LONG

As with all agricultural products, the marketing channel between the producer and the consumer in meat and milk is very long. This situation causes price increases with every change of hands.

EVER-INCREASING TRANSPORTATION COSTS

The ever-increasing transportation costs in meat and milk are also being passed on to the consumer.

SUMMARY

In animal production and marketing, which is a branch of agricultural production, if the complementary issues are not handled as a whole, daily solutions will not work.