Weather disruptions weigh on cotton as hazelnuts benefit

ISTANBUL

Türkiye’s winter weather has emerged as a double-edged sword for agriculture, ravaging cotton harvests in the west while simultaneously fortifying hazelnut prospects across the Black Sea region.

From the vast lowland plains to the rugged mountain peaks, this winter’s sweeping rain and snowfall reshaped agricultural expectations across the country.

While this singular weather system has inflicted heavy losses in agriculture across certain regions, it has simultaneously paved the way for recovery in others.

Cotton production stands as a primary casualty of this winter’s volatility, daily Hürriyet reported.

According to official figures, Türkiye cultivated 465,000 hectares and produced 840,000 tons of cotton in the last season.

Looking ahead, the country’s cotton planting areas are set to shrink to 430,000 hectares, pulling total output down to an estimated 780,000 tons as the industry grapples with shifting conditions.

While early forecasts placed Aegean cotton at 160,000 tons, the region's harvest momentum was shattered by torrential October rains.

A commodity exchange chair from the western city of İzmir, Işınsu Kestelli, said only 15 percent of the harvest had been completed before the rains, leaving the remaining 85 percent exposed to wet conditions.

With quality fading and storage facilities struggling to manage the damp yields, the industry is now projecting a 10 to 15 percent blow to production.

Regional agricultural officials report deeper damage at the local level.

Cem Yalvaç, head of a chamber of agriculture in the neighboring city of Manisa, estimated quality losses of at least 30 percent in the town of Salihli.

In a sobering report from another western province of Aydın, chamber of agriculture chair Şahabettin Çapakçıoğlu indicated that up to 80 percent of the city's cotton yields are bracing for negative impacts.

While cotton harvests struggle, the Black Sea’s hazelnut industry stands to benefit from the winter front.

"The gradual accumulation of snow throughout December, January and February yields highly positive outcomes for hazelnuts, provided there are no extreme freezes," stated Arslan Soydan, board member of the Union of Turkish Agricultural Chambers (TZOB).

Seeking a vital resurgence after last year’s catastrophic frost decimated national production from 717,000 to 453,000 tons, the sector is now positioned for a significant recovery as long as stable winter temperatures prevail.