23 September 2020 - Stringent early measures taken against Covid-19 by the Turkish authorities and the compound feed industry were successfully applied in the nation and have significantly reduced the impact of the pandemic on the sector.
Feed plants were able to maintain continuity of production by adapting their safety protocol with an emphasis on staff safety. Protective equipment was provided to all staff in the sector and shift patterns adjusted to increase the number of shifts while minimizing the number of workers on each shift, thus mitigating the risk of person-to-person transmission.
Turkey experienced a 15% rise in demand for compound feed during the first few months of pandemic, compared with previous months, after which demand returned to normal levels, which is in line with the rest of the industry in the southern European region. Despite fears of shortages that led to this stockpiling, Turkey’s compound feed producers were able to continue operating at almost normal levels, albeit hampered by minor issues in logistics.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, as seen globally, we had some problems regarding transportation because of the safety measures at customs. In terms of local supply chain, there were problems regarding the availability of delivery drivers because of the quarantine precautions for truck drivers. However these problems did not affect the supply chain seriously. At the moment everything is working well and we can receive and deliver our products easily”, said M. Ülkü Karakuş, President of TÜRKİYEMBİR (Türkiye Yem Sanayicileri Birliği), Turkey’s national feed manufacturers association.
However, outside forces are proving to be an ongoing challenge for the industry as the export restrictions imposed by supplying countries have resulted in a steep increase in the price of imported feed materials. April 2020, one month after COVID-19 cases started to appear in Turkey, saw price increases for cereals (2%), cereal by-products (15%), oilseed meal (21%) and molasses (14%). Ongoing input cost increases and the recent unfavourable change in the dollar exchange rate continue to pressurise the industry.
Despite the challenges, Karakuş’s outlook remains upbeat in the short term although mid to long term forecasting is understandably uncertain.
“August 2020 is expected to provide a small decrease in production volumes, with the total 2020 production estimated to be similar to 2019 (24.94 million tonnes). Under the current circumstances it is difficult to forecast very far into the future as the sector depends upon the progression of the pandemic. The international tourism sector and the restaurant trade have a large impact on demand for animal products and therefore demand for compound feed,” he said.
