Photo: Mustafa Ciftci - Anadolu Agency
ANTALYA, Turkey
Turkey exported $107 million worth of flowers to 83 countries in 2020 despite the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the Ornamental Plants and Products Exporters Union, which embodies the export of cut flowers, indoor and outdoor plants, flower bulbs, and wreaths, the number of branches of flowers sold abroad reached 505 million in 2020, most of them carnations.
Having started the year with gloomy figures due to the pandemic, Turkish flower exporters made pleasing shipments as of June due to loss of production in rival countries, Ismail Yilmaz, head of the association, told Anadolu Agency.
"Countries such as Spain and Italy could not plant flowers during the pandemic [...] Apart from that, not many flowers came to Europe due to decrease in the number of flights in some countries," Yilmaz said.
The largest market was the Netherlands last year, followed by the UK, Germany, Romania, and Bulgaria, he added.
Noting that 2021 will be a promising year for the exporters, Yilmaz said: "This year, we will achieve the goal of $125 million which we set for 2020."
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