Mayor of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Tunç SoyerWithin the scope of Mera İzmir project, the milk purchased from the sheep and goat farmer for twice the market is transformed into a product with the “İzmirli” brand. Producers from Izmir are getting ready for export with the international gastronomy fair Terra Madre Anadolu.
Mayor of Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Tunç SoyerThe Mera İzmir project, which was implemented in line with the vision of "Another Agriculture is Possible", opened the door for small producers to become an exporter. The Metropolitan Municipality knocked on the door of 4 shepherds one by one and produced the first shepherd map of Turkey, and according to this map, they bought the sheep and goat milk from the producers for twice the market and rolled up its sleeves for production. The Metropolitan Municipality, which processes the milk it collects and transforms it into a product with high added value with the brand of “İzmirli”, will open the door to export to small producers at Terra Madre Anatolia, the world's largest gastronomy fair, to be held on September 658-2.
The factory will be operational on October 29
İztarım A.Ş. General Manager Murat Onkardeşler said, “When our Bronze President took office, he spread the vision of 'Another Agriculture is Possible', which he started in Seferihisar, throughout the city. One of the first steps towards this was the support of the small producer. We focused on three issues while creating the 'İzmirli' brand. The first is the fight against poverty, the second is the fight against drought, and the third is to bring safe food to the consumer and the world. We transformed the milk we bought from the small producer into white cheese, tulum cheese, cheddar cheese and feta cheese in two separate dairy farms. By establishing an 'advanced processing department' at our Meat Integrated facility in Ödemiş, we will also present products such as sausage, roast beef, pastrami, doner kebab, meatballs and hamburger patties made from animals we buy from our producers, to the taste of consumers under the İzmirli brand. Bayındır Milk Processing Factory has a daily milk processing capacity of 100 tons. On October 29, our factory will be operational. We will produce many products here, from cheese to butter and yoghurt.”
“We will see the cheese of the producer, whose milk we buy from the plateau, in New York”
Saying that “Izmirli” branded products will meet the world at Terra Madre Anatolian fair, Murat Onkardeşler said, “Terra Madre is the world's largest gastronomy fair. Terra Madre means Mother Earth. It is a fair that directly overlaps with the three principles we have listed. A platform that supports ancient production methods and safe production not only in İzmir but also in Anatolia. With the fair, many brands from all over Turkey, such as the İzmirli brand, will deliver safe food to the consumers.”
Emphasizing that there will be an international participation in Terra Madde Anadolu Fair, Onkardeşler continued his words as follows: “Perhaps we will have the opportunity to see the cheese of the producer, whose milk we buy from the plateau, on the shelves in New York or a city in Europe. Terra Madre will also be the place where we will launch our brand from İzmir. It is very exciting for us to be promoting our brand in such a big event.”
“Saved us as a manufacturer”
Muzaffer Ercan, the headman of Bergama Hamzalı Süleymaniye Village, who is involved in the Mera İzmir project, and the producer, said, “It is a very good project. We are glad to give our milk. As a producer, I can say that it saved us. If Izmir Metropolitan Municipality had not bought milk this year, the shepherd would have been finished. God bless our President Tunç. Thanks to him, the shepherd began to breathe a little, he approached his old days. Our milk will be exported instead of spilled,” he said.
“We got what we paid for”
Bergama producer Gülten Ercan emphasized that her hard work paid off this year thanks to the project and said: “We had a dry year, I couldn't get the milk I wanted. I have spilled too much milk in the past. It's been great this year. In fact, agriculture makes money. We educated and raised two of our children. Thank God we help our children. What the municipality receives is enough for us. Otherwise, we would have sold our animals,” he said. Stating that she gives natural feed to her animals and that milk is healthy, Gülten Ercan continued her words as follows: “For her, the products obtained from this milk are also of high quality. I am a cheese maker for 35 years, our cheeses are good. When it becomes a brand, these products will reach even more people.”
“We want to give our milk to the Metropolitan and open up to the world”
Menemen producer İsa Taş stated that the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality's milk purchase is of great benefit and that they have overcome their problems, and said, “It has been very good for the region as well. At the moment, everyone wants to give milk to the Metropolitan. "If there were no purchases, some of the producers would have slaughtered their animals," he said. Emphasizing that quality milk means quality cheese, İsa Taş said, “It is very nice to be able to offer the best cheese and the best yoghurt to the consumer with the İzmirli brand. We would definitely like to take place in the world market. At the very least, it is a very important step for us to open up. Rather than dealing with small businesses, we would like to give our milk to the Metropolitan and open up to the world market.”
“Our milk was going cheap”
Bergama producer Nezaket Karamizrak, on the other hand, stated that they guarantee the quality of the cheeses produced and said, “The people here were buying our milk cheaply, while the Metropolitan bought it for 12 liras. It's been very good for us. Our cheeses are beautiful. I had not made cheese until this age, I started making cheese after I was 62 years old. Everyone is very satisfied. We want purchases to increase. If it increases, it will be very good for us. Thank you everyone,” he said.
Mera İzmir struggles with both poverty and drought
Pasture İzmir was established to support the shepherds and small producer cooperatives who graze and feed their animals in the pasture. In the project, which encourages the shepherds from whom milk and meat are purchased, to use feed produced from native and water-free heirloom seeds, the project fights both rural poverty and drought.
With the “Mera İzmir” project, more than 18 million liras of milk and over 6 million liras of meat have been purchased from the producer so far.
Be the first to comment