The Turkish poultry industry can expect a more positive year ahead after the setbacks caused by avian influenza in 2016. This was among the key messages at the opening of the 4th International Poultry Meat Congress.
The outlook is positive in the short and long term, Dr. Sait Koca, president of the country’s Poultry Meat and Breeders Association (BESD-BIR), told the 1,500 delegates gathered in Antalya, Turkey.
On the home market, consumption levels are on track for per capita poultry meat consumption to reach the global average by 2025, he continued. While this is positive, it still means there remains a large potential for consumption in the country to rise and for poultry meat production to grow.
Export challenge
Abroad, Iraq remains the chief export destination for Turkish poultry meat, but the number of export countries is also growing, offering Turkish producers an increasingly bright future in the international arena. Avian influenza had knocked exports in 2016; however, export markets have started to reopen.
Yet not everything in the export market is straightforward. Take, for example, the sale of chicken feet to China. There are no directly authorized sales; shipments occur via third countries, meaning China pays more for Turkish paws while Turkish producers lose out.
Where the industry is increasingly losing patience, however, is with the European Union, which continues to import raw chicken from Turkey for “political reasons,” Koca said.
He also noted that it was important for the industry to emphasize, at home and abroad, the food safety aspects of its products and how it works to international standards. The industry needs to confront fake news and has initiated various information campaigns to better educate the public.
Export markets are a key focus for Turkey’s Ministry of Agriculture, as the country is self sufficient in agricultural products and exports to 56 countries around the world. The Ministry is not simply focusing on raising export volumes, but on growing its focus in key markets.
Need for sustainability
Professor Necmettin Ceylan, congress chairman, emphasized that the industry must not only produce more to meet the rising demand for food, but also cut waste.
The area of available arable land will not increase, he said, meaning that the arable demand per capita will decrease just as demand for food is set to strongly rise.
By 2030, poultry will account for 39 percent of the world’s meat output and, while poultry may be the most sustainable meat to produce, the potential for more greenhouse gas emissions and greater demands on water resources will increase.
“Science and technology must be what you work with. You must invest in research,” he urged delegates. “Compared to cattle, poultry is environmentally friendly, so we must develop our flocks with the environment in mind. We must follow a sustainable model of production, producing poultry with less feed.”
He also urged delegates to keep welfare in mind not only in practice but in the way it presents itself to consumers, as this is an aspect of production that is of ever more concern to consumers.