ANKARA

Türkiye is leading the world with its rich, fertile lands, ranking among the top three in 22 agricultural products, while continuing to be a major player in the sector, according to data from the Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Ministry.

Türkiye boasts nearly 150,000 square miles of agricultural land, where various products, ranging from vegetables to fruits and grains, are grown. The country stood out in global agricultural production, ranking first worldwide in annual production of hazelnuts, figs, apricots, poppy seeds, cherries, quinces, and carobs.

Türkiye ranked first worldwide in apricot production, with 750,000 tons, followed by Uzbekistan with 500,545 tons, Iran with 318,475 tons, Italy with 207,190 tons, and Algeria with 200,566 tons, the data showed.

Türkiye produced 736,791 tons of cherries, accounting for 25% of the world’s cherry production of 2.9 million tons, coming in first place. The country was followed by China with 465,348 tons, the US with 321,420 tons, Uzbekistan with 218,867 tons, and Iran with 144,877 tons.

Türkiye also ranked first in fig production with 350,000 tons produced annually, followed by Egypt with 193,058 tons, Morocco with 119,167 tons, Algeria with 116,183 tons, and Iran with 73,483 tons.

Meanwhile, Türkiye produced over half of the world’s hazelnuts at 650,000 tons on an annual basis out of the 1.1 million tons worldwide, followed by Italy with 102,740 tons, the US with 85,460 tons, Azerbaijan with 75,409 tons, and Chile with 65,647 tons.

Türkiye ranked first in quince production, with 192,237 tons out of a global total of 687,036 tons, followed by China with 111,576 tons, Uzbekistan with 95,654 tons, Iran with 90,477 tons, and Morocco with 43,523 tons.

In carob production, Türkiye led the world with 24,561 tons produced, followed by Morocco with 22,096 tons, Lebanon with 4,188 tons, Algeria with 3,424 tons, and Tunisia with 813 tons.

Türkiye produced the most poppy seeds in the world, accounting for 7,922 tons produced out of the world’s 10,578-ton annual production, followed by Palestine with 1,539 tons, Serbia with 1,079 tons, and North Macedonia with 38 tons.

At the same time, Türkiye ranked second in cucumber and cherry production and third in mandarin, peach, spinach, chickpea, apple, cranberry, watermelon, melon, leek, pepper, tomato, and olive production, the data showed.