Unable to sell his potatoes, he distributed them to the public for free

Mahmut Tonbul, a farmer in Alaca, Çorum, put the potatoes he harvested from a 10-dekar field up for sale. Reacting to a merchant who had an agreement with him refusing to buy the potatoes by using the excuse that some of them were small in size, Tonbul announced that anyone from the district center and surrounding villages could come to the field and take the potatoes for free. Following this, citizens came to the field and collected the potatoes.

'I DISTRIBUTED THEM FOR FREE'

Stating that the potatoes, which are about twice the size of an average egg, were not purchased by the merchant this year, and that the merchant usually buys potatoes from the field for an average of 4 liras, Mahmut Tonbul said, "Last year was a bit better. This year the yield is good, but costs are high. The merchant takes half of the potatoes and leaves the other half on the ground. Because the farmer cannot make money this year, they will not be able to plant potatoes next year. We are distributing the potatoes left in the field to our people; our people are consuming them, but we also want to get a return on the expenses we incurred," he said.

Pointing out that the potatoes the merchant refused to buy from the field due to their size are sold for 12 liras at greengrocers, Tonbul added that this is why they are giving the potatoes left in the field to citizens for free.

News Source: İHA