Although August is the month when summer vegetables and fruits come to the markets, neither the producers nor the consumers are happy. While the producers are worried about tomatoes, peppers, and watermelons staying in the fields, some feed their products to their animals. Recently, producers in Karacabey, Bursa tried to make their voices heard with their slogans. CITIZENS COLLECT ROTTEN PRODUCTSIn big cities, however, the abundance of products does not seem to reflect on the prices. In some markets, especially in the evening hours, citizens try to meet their needs by selecting the useful ones among the rotten products thrown under the stalls. HE DID NOT HARVEST HIS CROPSIn Turgutlu district of Manisa, tomato producer Cemil Başbuğa protested against tomato prices by plowing his field without harvesting his crops. "FARMERS ARE HELD HOSTAGE"Commenting on the issue, Başbuğa said, "There are about 40-45 tomato paste factories in the Aegean and Marmara regions. They call each other and all the factory owners gather together and say that today's price is 1 lira 60 kuruş, 1 lira 70 kuruş. They have taken the farmers hostage. After all, these tomatoes are rotten goods. Goods that don't wait in the fields. Goods that can't fit in sacks. We don't have the means to make tomato paste with this much tomatoes. Because we don't have the means, they have put their hands around our necks, suffocating us, and looting our goods."
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