Miller Magazine Issue: 154 October 2022

80 MILLER / OCTOBER 2022 “I do not expect that Russia will pose a threat to Turkish flour industry by entering the flour market in the short term. The biggest disadvantage for Russia is that it can transport 3-5 thousand tons at most to Africa and other countries by channels and vessels. And this is not profitable due to freight prices. The biggest advantage of Turkey at this point is the container line. Most of the container lines in the world can easily reach Turkish ports.” ‘It would not be profitable for Russia to focus on flour exports instead of wheat’ Gürsel Erbap Chairman Doruk Un Doruk Un, one of the leading wheat flour producers and exporters of Turkey, which dominates the world flour trade, is shooting for the sky. The company, which plans to realize projects in the fields of noodle and pasta, solar energy facili- ty, agriculture and seed growing, feed and feed ingredients, especially in retail, will make an investment of 1.1 billion liras in the 5-year projection. The company is considering to give the lion’s share of its investment to noodles and pasta with 425 million liras and planning an investment of 275 million liras for energy. The biggest turnover target that the company expects from these investments is 4 billion liras from noodles and 700 million liras from pasta production. We had the chance to have a talk with Gürsel Erbap, Chair- man and CEO of Doruk Un, one of the veteran figures of the industry with a 32-year experience in all areas of the industry, at the company’s production facility in Tekirdağ. We talked with Mr. Erbap about his new investments, the dangers awaiting the Turkish flour industrialist, the world grain markets, the Black Sea grain corridor deal, Turkey’s flour export policies, and wheat production. The answers given by Gürsel Erbap to our questions are as follows: Mr. Gürsel, first of all, could you briefly introduce yourself to us? Can we listen to your company’s incorporation story and its journey to success? Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity. I was born in 1965 Tutak, Ağrı. I graduated from university in 1988 as an agricultural engineer. I finished all schools, including primary, secondary, high school and university ranking first. I entered the industry in 1989. I started at the lowest level. I started my business life by working in laboratories in flour factories. After getting to know the industry closely in a few years, I decided to stay in the industry and studied milling engineering abroad. So far, I have attended many seminars related to the sector. I have worked in many institutions and organizations related to the sector. Turkish Flour Industrial- ists’ Federation (TUSAF), Turkish Grain Board, Association of Marmara Region Flour Industrialists’, and Turkish Exporters’ Assembly are among the non-governmental organizations I have worked with in the sector. I have been working in the sector for 32 years. Although I am this experienced in the industry, the establish- ment of Doruk Un took place in 2015. Since 2015, together with our teammates, we proceed on our way collecting our experi- ences in the company. INTERVIEW