A bulletin that dropped in my post box…
That makes me smile bitterly.
Just as follows…
“Turkey reached a revenue worth of $237.4 million at the end of 2016/17 from dried apricot in which it is the world leader. Despite the increase in dried apricot by 14% in amount, it fell by 16% in value. The average export price of dried apricot dropped by 25%. Sector Council President of Turkish Dried Fruits Exporters’ Association Osman Oz said that Turkey corresponds 60% of the global production and 70-75% of the export. As to the reason why Turkey can’t dominate the prices in the apricot market, he pointed out that exporters prefer to rival in prices, not in quality.
I don’t know but does this situation sound similar to you?
So what does it mean?
If you don’t know the value of your product…
If you prefer rivalry by ‘lowering prices’ instead of rivalry by quality…
If you can’t manage to be ‘association’…
Even if you sell a stone or apricot, the result doesn’t change.
Therefore it is high time or even late for a self criticism for the sector that turned out to be the world’s biggest block marble producer.
It’s true that export figures in 2017 make us smile but it is also a reality that income figures per a ton are increasingly dropping!
Associations must immediately stand together and take common steps together.
But of course the associations need to be an ‘association’ in themselves!
And be sure that association can’t be built by attacking people through social media and declaring everyone who don’t think in the same way as ‘traitor, and polarizing people!
That’s what I am saying.