Food poisoning fears grip Istanbul as spate of incidents hits businesses

ISTANBUL

A series of poisoning cases reported over the past weeks, emerging just after the tragic death of a family visiting Istanbul from Germany, has fueled widespread anxiety over food safety and triggered steep economic losses for street vendors, restaurants and hotels in key tourist districts.

According to the All Restaurants and Tourism Association (TÜRES), street-food vendors in Beşiktaş saw sales of baked potatoes, mussels and kokoreç (a lamb intestine dish) plunge by more than 80 percent in the first days after the initial incident.

Kebabs and chicken döner shops also reported losses of up to 25 percent, while online food-delivery orders fell at nearly the same rate.

TÜRES official Rıdvan Turşak told daily Hürriyet that sales “still remain about 40 percent below pre-incident levels,” adding that the sharpest declines were recorded in Beşiktaş’s Ortaköy, an area long associated with Istanbul’s street-food culture.

The downturn began as a German-Turkish family staying at a hotel in Fatih fell ill on Nov. 12 after eating street food in Ortaköy and later died, prompting widespread speculation that contaminated food could be responsible.

Although forensic experts later pointed to aluminum phosphide from hotel fumigation as the likely cause, Turşak noted that the early focus on street food immediately shook consumer confidence and pushed customers away from small vendors.

The association issued a written statement stressing that it “cannot accept the entire food and beverage sector being cast under suspicion,” reminding that businesses are subject to regular sampling and inspections. It warned that a few noncompliant venues “should not define an entire industry.”

Ortaköy merchants also condemned what they described as reputational damage, saying turnovers have fallen by as much as 70 percent.

“We remained silent until now, but we will not do so anymore,” said lawyer Mehmet Derviş Yıldız of a local bazaar tradesmen association, urging authorities and the public to avoid “extrajudicial execution.”

Tourism officials say hotels have also been affected.

While the Small Hotels Association of Türkiye (TÜRKODER) reported no measurable losses, Gürkan Özcan from the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TÜRSAB) estimated that bookings in Fatih may have dropped by 10 to 15 percent.

“Events that create a perception of insecurity inevitably influence reservations,” he said.

Public unease has been compounded by several unrelated poisoning cases reported in the past week.

In Istanbul’s Şişli district, 25 people who had ordered food from the same restaurant sought treatment for suspected poisoning; the venue was later sealed after inspectors found it was operating without a license.

In Beyoğlu district, a 26-year-old engineer was left in intensive care after drinking Turkish coffee prepared with industrial dishwasher detergent instead of water, suffering severe chemical burns.

Though the recent incidents are not visibly connected, their timing has intensified public concerns and for many Istanbul businesses, the financial impact is already unmistakable.