Prof. Dr. Tayfun Özkaya writes: The book 'Turkey's Agriculture' sheds light on the past and the future

A country's independence is primarily possible through the feeding of its individuals. Individuals who are left hungry first lose their self-confidence and then their hope. As a result, national consciousness disappears, and the masses fall under the sovereignty of whoever feeds them.

In the last two world wars, or more accurately, the "two wars of partition," this situation was experienced in Europe and Russia. In the aforementioned wars, the number of people who died of hunger was greater than the number of those who died fighting.

However, agricultural subsidies implemented in both the EU and the US also led to the formation of large product stocks in these countries. The necessity to liquidate these stocks emerged. To liquidate these stocks, the collapse of the agriculture of third-world countries like Turkey was put on the agenda. For this purpose, neoliberal policies began to be implemented through the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

In this direction, neoliberal policies were put into effect in Turkish agriculture after September 12, 1980. The view that the only way to modernize Turkish agriculture was the free-market economy became dominant.

Seed and petroleum laws were regulated in the direction desired by imperialism. The agricultural support system that supported the prices received by farmers before the neoliberal period was completely abolished, and instead of production-based subsidies favored by corporations, subsidies that encouraged non-production, such as direct income support, were implemented, and then this was also changed.

However, the replacement practice continued in the same neoliberal system, where money flowed indirectly into the coffers of corporations, such as through premiums.

Although there was talk of supporting the free market, corporations gained near-monopoly power in both agricultural inputs and the product prices they paid to farmers. In other words, there was no "free market" in reality. Subsidies were directed toward the creation of giant capitalist enterprises instead of small and medium-sized enterprises based on family labor. Some of the agricultural state-owned enterprises were privatized, while others were rendered dysfunctional.

In Turkey, farmers migrated to cities by abandoning their lands because they could not earn money. As a result, since our agricultural production has not increased per capita, we have become dependent on foreign sources, especially in terms of agricultural products that meet the needs for protein (red meat, milk, etc.), energy (cereals, oilseeds, etc.), and clothing (primarily cotton and industrial plants, leather, wool, etc.).

All governments that have served since September 12, 1980, bear responsibility for turning Turkey into a country that imports agricultural products. The Ecevit governments, which enacted the laws of Özal, Demirel, Çiller, Erbakan, Yılmaz, and Derviş, should not be forgotten. Furthermore, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) governments, which came to power after 2002 with the promise of defeating poverty and corruption, have taken neoliberal policies in agriculture to their highest levels.

Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kaymakçı also writes in the articles he has penned and the books he has published for years that this is not coincidental and that the issue is related to imperialism and their local collaborators under their control.

Kaymakçı states that, as mentioned above, Turkey's agricultural production has been collapsed, production does not meet the needs of the growing population, and it is clearly an importer of agricultural products, and he makes the following assessment: "Farmers who could not market their products at a fair price had to either sell their land or give up production. Peasants who left the countryside migrated to cities. However, since both the industry and service sectors are in decline, they became the biggest source of unemployment. Those living in cities also consume the farmers' products, which are bought cheaply, at high prices, primarily due to a lack of organization. In short, agriculture has become one of our most important issues on the agenda, not just as a problem of the rural sector, but as a problem of Turkey."

Kaymakçı is an academic who, alongside his scientific studies, sees and knows that science is connected to political economy. In this context, he did not remain a mere technocrat. He wrote books on agricultural and scientific policies in the interests of the vast majority who live by their labor.

In this scope, he has published his books on agricultural policies implemented in Turkey under the titles 'Notes on Turkish Agriculture, 2009', 'Agricultural Writings Against Global Capitalism, 2010', 'Hunger and Imperialism, 2012 (Editor)', and 'Agriculture is Independence, 2012'.

Finally, the book 'Turkey's Agriculture (Imperialist Attack and Solutions)', penned by Kaymakçı, has also been released by Pankuş Yayınları.

The book contains selected articles by Kaymakçı between 2012 and 2024 and consists of seven chapters.

The book 'Turkey's Agriculture (Imperialist Attack and Solutions)' brings the imperialist attack to light in agriculture, which is a branch of the economy, just as it does in political and social issues, and at the same time, it shows the ways to solutions. In this respect, the book has the quality to shed light on the world of politics as well as those who will conduct studies on Turkish agriculture.

Article: Prof. Dr. Tayfun Özkaya