11.07.2024 12:00
In Ordu, the kilogram of blueberries, which were distributed as seedlings in previous years and are now being harvested, finds buyers between 300-350 TL, which also brings joy to the producers.
The efforts initiated by Dr. Mehmet Hilmi Güler, the Mayor of Ordu Metropolitan Municipality, to diversify agricultural economic income sources in his first term continue to grow and develop in his new term. The support of Ordu Metropolitan Municipality has also made blueberry producers, whose seedlings were distributed in previous years and are now being harvested and sold for 300-350 TL per kilogram, happy.
ENTERING THE PRODUCTION CULTURE OF FARMERS Blueberries, which are a strong commercial product in terms of both fresh consumption and processed fruit industry and are sold for 300-350 TL per kilogram, have entered the production culture of farmers in the studies carried out in line with the rural development goals since Mayor Güler took office in 2019.
HAPPY FARMERS WITH ECONOMIC RETURNS Ordu Metropolitan Municipality provided 15,300 seedling support to 42 producers in Altınordu, Gülyalı, Gölköy, Gürgentepe, Kabadüz, Kumru, Mesudiye, Perşembe, Ulubey, and Ünye districts since 2020. With these supports, the blueberry production area reached 51 decares throughout Ordu. With these studies, blueberries have taken their place in the production culture as an additional income-generating product alongside hazelnuts. Blueberries, which are loved by the Ordu lands and have a very good yield, have also made farmers happy with their economic returns. The income per unit area of producers who switched to blueberries in orchards with low hazelnut yields increased by approximately 10 times.
"BLUEBERRIES HAVE A GOOD MARKET VALUE" Volkan Sürgit, a producer who established a blueberry garden in Ünye with the support of Ordu Metropolitan Municipality, said that blueberries have an important return and that he is expanding his garden day by day. Sürgit, who thanked the Metropolitan Municipality for their support, said, "We were looking for an alternative product to hazelnuts, and we decided on blueberries because they have a higher market value. We decided to produce blueberries together with my friends. We started with an area of 5 acres. Afterwards, we expanded our production areas by benefiting from the seedling support of Ordu Metropolitan Municipality. Since then, we have been expanding our areas and continuing production. Our product has a very important market value. When fully produced, 1-1.5 tons of product can be obtained per decare. We would like to thank our Mayor Dr. Mehmet Hilmi Güler and his team, who have enabled us to develop in this business and provided us with trust."
Meanwhile, while Ordu Metropolitan Municipality continues to provide support for the further expansion of blueberry cultivation, cold storage and marketing support are provided to producers for the harvested products.