12 I EUROPEAN SEED I EUROPEAN-SEED.COM W ith agricultural lands of more than 38 mil- lion ha and an agri- cultural production value of more than $34 billion USD, according to TURKSTAT data of 2016, Turkey is one of the prominent countries in the world with respect to agricul- tural production. Of 24 million ha arable lands, not counting the 14 million ha of mead- ow-pasture lands, 40 per cent is used for field crops, mainly cereals, 9 per cent for fruit and 2 per cent for vegetable pro- duction, whereas the remain- ing 10 per cent is composed of fallow lands. With respect to agricultural production value, field crops take the lead with a production value of $13.6 bil- lion USD, followed by fruit spe- cies with a production value of 11.3 billion USD, and vegeta- ble species with a production value of $9.1 billion USD. According to 2016 data on production amounts of field crops in Turkey, cereal produc- tion, which reaches 27 million tons with wheat and barley production in the first place, is WHY IT MATTERS Turkey has recently entered the top 10 of the largest seed countries in the world. This article dives into the recent history, and how the actors in the seed sector managed to pull off this remarkable feat. followed by sugar beet produc- tion (19.5 million tons), sweet corn (6.4 million tons), potato (4.8 million tons), onion (2.1 million tons), cotton (2.1 mil- lion tons), and sunflower (1.7 million tons). Out of a total of 29 million tons in fresh vege- table production, tomato ranks first with a production of 12.6 million tons, while melon and watermelon production ranks second with a production of six million tons in 2016. RECENT HISTORY IN THE TURKISH SEED INDUSTRY The publication and enforce- ment of the first law on seeds (Law No. 308 on Registration, Control and Certification of Seed) in 1963, membership of Turkey to the International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) in the same year, and inclusion of the country in the OECD Seed Schemes in 1968 are recognized as very significant achievements for the development of the sector. However, despite these crucial steps, the seed sector, which continued to have almost a completely public-sector struc- ture until the 1980s, had a very slow pace of development. Having realized this fact, deci- sion-makers took radical deci- sions for the transformation of the sector, and thus the indus- try began to transform, thanks to legal and administrative regulations that started in mid-1980s. In these years, the government liberated imports of new and productive varieties and free market rules started to prevail in price-formation. The first professional institu- tion in the sector, the Turkish Seed Industry Association, was also founded in the same TSÜAB AT THE HEART OF THE TURKISH SEED INDUSTRY. BY: AHMET MÜFIT ENGIZ Recently arrived in the top 10, and not stopping yet period (1985). However, none of this development pro- cess was deemed sufficient by the leading companies in the sector. Therefore, along with the enforcement of the needed legal regulations by the Ministry of Agriculture upon initiatives that started in the first half of the 2000s, a second significant move for transformation started, which has brought the Turkish seed sector to these days. SEED REGULATIONS IN TURKEY The development process picked up further speed with the foundation of the Turkish Seed Union (TÜRKTOB) by sector members in 2008 and seven sub-unions namely for Plant Breeders; Seed Distributors; Seed Growers; Seedling Producers; Sapling Producers; Ornamental Plant Producers and the Sub-Union of Seed Industrialists and Producers (TSÜAB). These seven sub-unions are mem- bers of TÜRKTOB through their elected representatives. Thus, significant advances are achieved in communication and collaboration among the stakeholders of the industry and the Arbitration Board, which was founded within TÜRKTOB and where all sub-unions are represented, and plays a mediatory role in problems among stakeholders. Besides these significant achievements in the sector, Turkey also became a member of UPOV in 2007. Another law that is of particular interest to our sector is the Biosafety Law, which entered into force in 2010. According to the pro- visions of this law, it is prohib- ited to produce any genetically Burhanettin Topsakal, president of TSUAB.