TURKEY 2011 TRADE MISSION & 2011 FOODIST TRADE SHOW REPORT December 4-9, 2011 Prepared for the US Dry Bean Council J. Stobbs (Marketbase), 71 avenue Bosquet, 75007 Paris, FRANCE Tel. + 33 (0) 1 45 51 36 03 / Fax + 33 (0) 1 47 53 72 85 email: [email protected] Table of Contents page Trade Mission Summary 3 Summary of US Dry Bean Exports to Turkey 5 Turkey Market Highlights 7 Trade Mission Schedule 8 Turkey Trade Show 11 Trade Show Leads 16-24 Trade Mission Meeting Notes Tiryaki Agro 25 Marka Trading 27 Yurt Canning 30 Memi şoglu 32 Agroder 35 Yayla 37 Armada 40 Bayamtaş 42 Going Forward in 2012 44 USDBC Report – 2011 Turkey Trade Mission & FOODIST Trade Show, December 2011 2 Trade Mission Summary Title: 2011 Turkey Trade Mission Trip Start Date: December 4, 2011 Trip End Date: December 9, 2011 Trip Locations: Istanbul and Mersin Trip Country: Turkey Trip Persons: USDBC Trade Team: Bob Green, Mark Dombeck, Johanna Stobbs Trip Itinerary: Airline Schedules Name Arrival Time Airline Departure Time Airline Bob Green Sat., Dec. 3 10h15 Delta #72 Sat., Dec. 10 12h15 Delta #73 Mark Dombeck Sun., Dec. 4 14h25 AF #1590 Mon., Dec. 12 06h25 AF #8353 Johanna Stobbs Sat., Dec. 3 16h55 AF #1890 Fri., Dec. 9 15h15 AF #1591 Trip Purpose: • to renew ties with Turkish importers of US dry beans • to discuss the drop in US dry bean production in 2011 and the resulting rise in prices • to reassure Turkish importers that US dry bean production will in all probability return to normal production levels in 2012 and that prices will become more affordable • to ascertain which dry legume products are most sought after in the Turkish market. Trip Result: • 8 top Turkish import companies were interviewed (3 in Istanbul and 5 in Mersin) during the 3-day Trade Mission period of December 5-7. Three of these, Tiryaki, Agroder and Bayamtas, were new trade contacts for the USDBC. • The USDBC also participated in the Foodist Trade Show in Istanbul with a booth shared with the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council. The Trade Team worked at the show on December 8. • Johanna Stobbs, USDBC and USADPLC representative for Turkey, made a presentation on Consumer Trends for Dry Legumes in the US and Europe , at a Foodist Trade Show seminar, organized by the Turkish Packagers Association, PAKDER. • 3 container loads of US garbanzo beans were sold during the Trade Mission for a value of $109,000. • 4 companies (Yurt, Agroder, Bayamta ş and Armada) requested US product samples during the Trade Mission, with a view to placing purchasing orders at a future date. USDBC Report – 2011 Turkey Trade Mission & FOODIST Trade Show, December 2011 3 • A USDBC logo program, to encourage the consumption of US pinto beans in Turkey, was discussed by two companies interested in promoting US pinto beans, Yayla and Memisoglu. Such a program, envisaged for 2012, would authorize the use of the USDBC’s heart logo on packages of US pinto beans that state the country of origin as US and that name the beans as “US Pinto Beans”. Trip Recommendation: • The US dry bean industry should be encouraged to continue to follow the Turkish market because it is in a state of flux. Opportunities for US garbanzo beans remain strong. Great Northern bean exports may also take off in the spring of 2012. The market also has a growing interest in dark red kidney beans and is now ready to promote US pinto beans as a new, US specialty product. Monitoring these trends and opportunities should be a priority for the USDBC in 2012. Of vital importance will be to keep the Turkish trade informed of US production levels as the planting season begins in the spring of 2012. Industry contact : Bob Green, Chairman of the US Dry Bean Council’s International Programs Committee Note: the role of the PR Agency, Promedia The USDBC was assisted during the Trade Mission of 2011 by the Turkish PR Agency, Promedia, which provided logistical aid and translation support; for participation in the FOODIST Trade Show, Promedia helped to design and organize the booth, and provided booth staff during the 4-day show. USDBC Report – 2011 Turkey Trade Mission & FOODIST Trade Show, December 2011 4 Summary of US Dry Bean Exports to Turkey The USDBC Trade Mission to Turkey of 2011 came at a crucial time. The US crop of September 2011 registered important falls, both in area planted and overall production. Area planted was stated in the USDA Report of December 9, 2011 to have declined by 37% compared with the previous year, while area harvested showed a 38% drop. US dry bean production fell from 1,442,470 MT in 2010 to just 894,890 MT in 2011, a decrease of 38%. Production was lower in 17 of the 18 states in the dry bean regions, including the top five producing states (North Dakota, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Idaho). The fall in US production can be attributed largely to a shift to corn, wheat and soy, which were seen by US farmers as more profitable. To some extent wet weather conditions also contributed to the poor performance of 2011. The drop in US dry bean production has resulted in significant price increases and a sharp downturn in exports to Turkey. The Trade Mission has played a significant role in helping to stabilize commercial relations between US exporters and Turkish importers. Many Turkish importers were shocked by the US price rises and had difficulty in understanding why production levels had fallen so low after years of fairly steady numbers. The Trade Mission allowed the US Dry Bean Council to explain to Turkish traders the reasons for the current situation and to reassure them that market conditions for 2012 indicate that US dry bean production will return to more normal levels and more reasonable pricing. This is because the high dry bean prices of this year will encourage US farmers to plant more dry beans in 2012. The three most important classes of US dry beans for Turkey are Great Northern beans, pinto beans and dark red kidney beans. All three suffered production decreases in 2011. Great Northern beans fell to 54,636 MT in 2011, compared with 63,773 in 2010, a drop of 14%. The fall in pinto bean production was even more dramatic. In 2010, the US produced 627,909 MT of pinto beans, while in 2011 production reached just 268,692 MT, a decline of 57%. Dark red kidney beans were down by 6%. USDBC Report – 2011 Turkey Trade Mission & FOODIST Trade Show, December 2011 5 It is clear that high 2011 prices have slowed down US dry bean exports to Turkey. After an excellent 2010, in which the US exported 5,522 MT (4,937 MT of which occurred during January-October), the picture for the period of January-October 2011 shows just 988 MT. This is particularly unfortunate for US pinto beans, which were just beginning to make inroads into this market, following the EMP program of 2009 which featured US pinto beans. Until this unexpected downturn in US pinto bean production, pintos were starting to become a known, and much appreciated, class of US dry bean in Turkey. US Exports to Turkey Cumulative To Date Quantities / Values in Thousands of Dollars % Jan-Dec Jan-Dec Jan-Oct Jan-Oct Jan-Oct Jan-Oct % Value Quantity 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011 Change Change Value Quantity Value Quantity Value Quantity ($ 000) (MT) ($ 000) (MT) ($ 000) (MT) ($ 000) (MT) Great Northern 3,207 4,390.90 3,207 4,390.90 0 0 -100% -100% Beans Dark Red 75 100 53 79.2 49 60.4 -8% -24% Kidney Beans Pinto Beans 29 41.7 29 41.7 0 0 -100% -100% Black Beans 17 21.3 17 21.3 0 0 -100% -100% Non-specified 0 0 0 0 81 65.3 n/a n/a Beans (NESOI) Garbanzos 835 968 288 404.3 656 861.9 +128 +113 Total 4,162 5,522.00 3,594 4,937.40 786 987.6 -78% -80% Source: FAS USDBC Report – 2011 Turkey Trade Mission & FOODIST Trade Show, December 2011 6 Turkey Market Highlights Discussions during trade meetings touched on the following topics: • It was generally agreed among Turkish traders that there is a downward trend in Chinese dry legume production and that Chinese product is in retreat in the Turkish market. • However, Russia is now entering Turkey and has a growing presence with regard to yellow peas and green lentils; Russian dry beans have not yet had an impact on the market. Several Turkish companies have made investments in southeastern Russia. These new business interests involve both the purchase of land and growing contracts. • Dry legume purchases by Turkish importers are generally at a standstill because prices are seen as starting to decrease; there is a “wait-and-see” attitude among traders. • This “wait-and-see” position is exacerbated by a fall in the value of the Turkish lira against the US dollar, making products bought with US dollars more expensive. • In addition, the major bankruptcy of a Turkish import company is having a ripple affect among several other companies which have lost considerable amounts of money. • Finally, there are political tensions with neighboring Syria, where violence against Syrian citizens by the Syrian government has led to a 30% import duty on Turkish goods entering Syria, as well as slow-downs and closings of the Turkish-Syrian border. Turkey and Syria are normally strong trading partners, and pulses play an important trade role in cross-trade relations.