Potato Harvest Opens in Niğde With Farm-Gate Prices at 20–25 Lira per Kilogram

The potato harvest has opened in Niğde, the province with the largest potato planting area in Türkiye, with produce changing hands in the field at 20 to 25 lira per kilogram. Veli Kenar, president of the Niğde Chamber of Agriculture, said prices at that level cover growers’ production costs and leave room for income, according to a report by sondakika.com.

Field prices reach 25 lira per kilogram

Potatoes are finding buyers in the field at 20 to 25 lira per kilogram as the first lots come out of the ground, sondakika.com reported. Kenar tied the spread to product characteristics rather than a single benchmark: quality, variety and specification all move the figure within the band. He argued that the sale price should reflect both production costs and the farmer’s labour.

“Potato prices are currently running at the value they deserve,” Kenar said. “The price can change according to the quality, type and characteristics of the product. But prices at the current level of 20 to 25 lira are important in terms of our producer being able to get a return on their labour.”

230,000 decares planted this season

Niğde planted 230,000 decares to potatoes this year — the equivalent of 23,000 hectares — and remains the province with the most potato area planted in the country, according to sondakika.com. Planting on that scale makes the province’s harvest a reference point for national supply and for the pricing of both table-grade and processing-grade potatoes, and it sets the timetable that traders and processors work to once digging begins.

Kenar put this year’s expected crop for Niğde at around 900 tonnes. The report carries that figure without further explanation and does not reconcile it with the planted area, so it should be treated with caution pending official provincial production data.

Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria take the export volume

Potatoes grown in Niğde are shipped to neighbouring countries, principally Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria, Kenar said. Processed potato products from the province are exported to a range of third countries, giving the region two distinct export channels: fresh volume moving over short overland routes, and value-added product reaching markets further out.

“Niğde potatoes hold an important place both in the domestic market and in exports,” Kenar said. “We send the potatoes we produce to neighbouring countries, primarily Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria. Our processed potato products are also exported to various third countries. In this respect, Niğde potatoes have a significant market share both at home and abroad.”

What the opening prices set up

The start of the harvest fixes the first reference point of the campaign for growers, packers and processors alike. Early lots typically command the firmest prices of the season, and the question for the coming weeks is whether the 20 to 25 lira band holds as the bulk of the crop moves off 230,000 decares. Growers with storage capacity can meter their sales against that curve; those selling directly from the field are exposed to the heaviest supply of the year.

• Farm-gate price: 20 to 25 lira per kilogram, varying with quality, variety and specification
• Planted area in Niğde: 230,000 decares, equivalent to 23,000 hectares — the largest of any province in Türkiye
• Expected crop, as reported by the Chamber of Agriculture: around 900 tonnes
• Main export destinations: Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria, with processed products going to third countries

The Chamber of Agriculture’s stated position is that current prices are at the level the crop deserves after costs and labour are accounted for. For importers in the neighbouring markets that take most of Niğde’s fresh volume, the opening band is the first indication of what this season’s procurement will cost.