Miller Magazine Issue: 156 December 2022

70 COVER STORY MILLER / DECEMBER 2022 dized by TMO, not through living off of the farmer. It was antici- pated that the advantageous price practice applied to wheat this year and the bread subsidy other than could be reflected in the coming years in the form of an increase in wheat cultivation areas and contribute to the sustainability of wheat production. Howev- er, considering the concern that such practices may hinder the development of the private sector in the long run, the necessity of developing alternative methods was also emphasized. Although Türkiye’s population is around 85 million, consider- ing the immigrants that are being hosted due to the negativities in our nearby geography, the aid given to the countries that lost productivity, and the tourists which increased at a record level, the necessity of dealing with a population of over 100 million has been mentioned. In a population of this level, around 20 million tons of wheat is required for domestic consumption. Although wheat production is at a level that can meet domestic consump- tion in many years as was in this production year, it still stands at a critical limit. In the dry years, it may fall short of meeting the domestic consumption. One of the important factors determining the development of the food industry is to be able to continu- ously supply raw materials of sufficient and appropriate quality. The pandemic, Russia-Ukraine war, climate change and global risks create important problems in accessing food raw materials. Therefore, in order to be safe from global risks, it is necessary to increase wheat production, which is a strategic product, and to ensure sustainability. For this, it was noted that it is essential to increase the wheat cultivation areas, which have decreased to 7 million hectares, to 8 million hectares through a gradual increase. It was stated that, in this production year, indirect subsidiza- tion of bread to some extent other than through the farmer, but through the allocation of wheat at affordable prices (flour regula- tion), realistic price determination in world prices, premium appli- cation and price update will contribute to this, but additional mea- sures will be needed. In this context, it was considered important to increase the certified seed, fertilizer and diesel fuel supports in wheat and to reach 171 TRY per decare. However, this figure was 116 TRY with the temporary support of 50 TRY last year. It is understood from these statements that the temporary support has been removed. It is recommended that this support be made permanent and added to 171 TRY and increased to 221 TRY per decare. It is also important that the product support, which is 10 cents per kg, is increased to 25 cents. Which crops to grow in irrigated areas is decided according to the course of the year, and often options unsuitable in terms of soil and water resources reveal, and uneconomical choices may come to the table. A production planning that takes into account the soil, water resources, the environment and the principle of economy cannot be made in real terms. It was suggested that the quadruple cropping system (in which wheat farming is oblig- atory in at least one year) in accordance with scientific, technical and economic principles must be put into practice by combining it with agricultural supports. It was pointed out that this system would create a production plan not only for wheat but also for different strategic products, as well as providing a significant contribution to the protection of soil and water resources. Since every drop of water is valuable and directly related to food safety, the projects of bringing water from the outer basins to the water-deficient basins by protecting the ecosystem in the basins must be reconsidered. Those that were previously not feasible in terms of cost must be re-evaluated with the alternative of benefit- ing from renewable energy sources, taking into account the food prices and the difficulty in their availability in the process. As impor- tant as the steps taken by our country towards energy independ- ence, the steps to be taken to ensure the sustainability and safety of food are equally important. For this reason, it is necessary to act faster and more decisively in project design and welding and chan- nel every drop of water into agriculture. It was evaluated that these practices, along with the price policy, support model and quadruple cropping, could positively reflect on the increase in wheat cultiva- tion areas and therefore on production. It was also stated that it would be a positive argument in reducing fallow areas. In the presentations in which it was stated that the self-suf- ficiency of a country in a sector in the world is decided by its equality in the foreign trade balance or its excess in favor of exports, it was emphasized that although the government tried to interpret self-sufficiency as the absence of any import in that sector from time to time, this wasn’t valid in scientific terminology. From this point of view, since Türkiye is a country with a foreign trade surplus in Agricultural and Food Products, it can be defined