15.02.2025 13:50
In the Beşikdüzü district of Trabzon, a hazelnut trader disappeared without making payments for millions of lira worth of hazelnuts that he had taken on consignment from dozens of producers after the last hazelnut season. Hazelnut producers gathered at the trader's workplace, which was allegedly emptied out at midnight, to express their reaction to the situation.
Dozens of hazelnut producers in the Beşikdüzü district of Trabzon have suffered millions in losses. T.T., who was engaged in hazelnut trading under the name 'Gürem Fındık', disappeared after taking hazelnuts on consignment from producers following last year's hazelnut season. Producers who could not reach T.T., who emptied his shop, gathered to raise their voices and express their reactions through social media. In the incident where dozens of people were victimized, a million-dollar loss occurred, and the gathered producers came together in the shop emptied by the hazelnut trader.
SOME PRODUCERS FAINTED Producers who met with the lawyer of the company that T.T. allegedly sold the hazelnuts to reacted to the situation. Some producers fainted and were taken to the hospital by ambulance, while tension arose between the company lawyer and the producers.
NO PAYMENTS HAVE BEEN MADE SINCE NOVEMBER Producer Hayriye Yıldızlar Birinci stated that they met with the company lawyer and learned that their payments would start to be made in the upcoming September, saying, "I gave my mother's hazelnuts in November. I left my 80-year-old mother's hazelnuts here on consignment. We have been coming and going here since November. Every time we came, they directed us to the next month. They constantly postponed. We created a WhatsApp group with hazelnut victims we found from Vakfıkebir, Tonya, and Çarşıbaşı districts. They emptied this place and fled at midnight. Hazelnuts are the livelihood of the Black Sea. My mother bent over to collect these hazelnuts. They want to postpone these payments to September. There is no certainty about that either. Even if we receive this money in September, we are still victims. They haven't paid the workers here either," she said.
HE FLED AT MIDNIGHT Producer Senem Saraç, who stated that she has over 100,000 lira in receivables, said, "I gave my hazelnuts 5 months ago. We have been waiting since that day. They are constantly deceiving us. I gave 500 kilograms of hazelnuts. I had over 100,000 lira in receivables. He sends a lawyer here. He fled at midnight. He opened a shop somewhere else. If you don't have money, how can you open a shop there? They say the money will be given in September, but there is no guarantee for that either. There is no security," she said.
"THERE IS A LOSS OF 7-8 MILLION" Producer Hayrettin Çolak expressed that there is a loss of 7-8 million, saying, "I brought not only my own hazelnuts but also my wife’s and friends’ hazelnuts. I paid my wife’s and friends’ money. But when it came to my own hazelnuts, he deceived me by relying on sincerity. He says he will pay the hazelnut money in September. We absolutely do not accept this. Currently, there are still people taking hazelnuts in his name here. There is a loss of 7-8 million here. This amounts to about 40-50 tons of hazelnuts. We will also take the matter to court. Because he did not only defraud us. I do not think there will be any result from this," he stated.
"WE TRUSTED BECAUSE IT WAS A FACTORY" Hazelnut producer Ahmet Çabuk said, "I gave my hazelnuts on September 18. They kept stalling me by saying I would receive them in a week or 10 days. I became a victim. I have a disabled child. I borrow money from my friends to buy my child's medicine. We trusted because it was a factory. But we were wrong. They sent a lawyer here. Now they are asking us for a date 6-7 days later. It doesn't seem like it will happen," he said.