Iraq emerges as second largest importer of Turkish produce in Q1 2024

NEWSROOM — Iraq was Turkey’s second-biggest importer of fruits and vegetables for the first three months of 2024, according to the head of a Turkish exporting group.

Turkey’s fresh produce exports enjoyed a strong start in 2024, reaching $963.4 million in the first quarter, according to a statement by Ferhat Guruz, chairman of the Turkish Mediterranean Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Exporters Association. This represents a 3% increase compared to the same period last year.

Speaking to Turkish Agri.News, Guruz highlighted key trends. “The most exported products of our sector…were tangerines, tomatoes, and lemons,” he said, with sales totaling $227.4 million, $167 million, and $108 million respectively. The sector also exported over 1.3 million tons of produce in total.

While Russia remained the largest export market with $216.9 million worth of produce purchased, Iraq saw the most significant growth, with a staggering 346% increase in imports, reaching $108.1 million and becoming the second-largest importer of Turkish fruits and vegetables.

According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), Iraq ranked third overall among the Turkey’s largest importers in December 2023. 

Bilateral trade between Turkey and Iraq is expected to increase after the two countries signed 24 different memoranda of understanding in April during Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s first visit to the country in over a decade.

The Strategic Framework Agreement for Joint Cooperation outlines coordination between Ankara and Baghdad on a number of issues including trade, security, water resource sharing and the Development Road Project, which aims to link the Gulf with Europe via a train and road network through Iraq and Turkey.