Severe frost and hail disasters experienced last year have caused deep wounds in the fruit-growing sector while triggering food inflation. Experts point out that waiting for regulations against the effects of global climate change to yield results will take decades, urging producers to turn to greenhouse farming and technological climate control investments.
Global climate change continues to disrupt traditional agricultural zones in Turkey. Unexpected natural events, which are becoming increasingly frequent, especially in the Mediterranean and Aegean Region, have turned open-field agriculture into a high-risk investment. The frost and hail events experienced nationwide last year caused serious declines in the yield of sensitive fruits like cherries and astronomical increases in market prices. This situation reveals the necessity for an urgent structural transformation in agriculture.
Evaluating the issue from the perspective of industrial climate control and agricultural technologies, Bulut Güneş, Co-Founder of Enorpa Enerji and Mechanical Engineer, emphasized the need to take rational and fast steps in combating the climate crisis. "We do not have time to wait for the result of regulations."
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Stating that they closely follow the scientific studies and legal regulations carried out globally regarding climate change, Bulut Güneş pointed out that the reflection of these processes in the field will take time: "Our country is quickly making the necessary legal regulations and taking reactions in parallel with the developments in Europe. However, we must be realistic; even if these laws are fully implemented, the recovery of our changing climate zones requires a struggle that will take decades. The next generations will reap the rewards of these regulations. But our generation, today's society, needs to consume fruits and vegetables uninterruptedly and at accessible prices. We cannot secure today's food supply by hoping that natural disasters will not occur or simply by waiting for long-term laws."
Opportunity born from crisis: dwarf trees and climate-controlled greenhouses
Increasing risks and rising market prices have paved the way for new strategies for visionary agricultural investors. In the Mediterranean and Aegean Region, some producers abandoned traditional methods and switched to dwarf-type cherry trees, protecting these trees with greenhouse systems.
At this point, stating that investors applied to Enorpa Enerji with the goal of not only protecting the products from natural events but also bringing them to the market early, Güneş summarized the process with these words:
"Producers built greenhouses to protect against frost and hail. When they came to us, their main goal was how to bring the harvest forward while providing this protection. As Enorpa Enerji, we offered them a rational solution with our expertise in industrial greenhouse heating systems. Thanks to the systems we installed, the producer secured their yield regardless of external weather conditions. More importantly, early production was achieved with the optimum climate control provided, enabling these products to be directed to export markets with high profit margins. This is a direct solution that both minimizes the investor's risk and provides high added value to the national economy."
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"Secure your revenue stream"
Stating that the global increase in logistics costs makes fruit and vegetable imports or sourcing products from distant regions uneconomical, Bulut Güneş gave the following advice to regional farmers:
"Accept climate change", he said. "Natural events are no longer an "exception" but the
new normal. Agricultural activities must be planned according to this reality." Next up is the transition to greenhouse farming. "Existing open-field horticultural activities should be adapted for greenhouse farming to eliminate risks such as frost and hail." Investing in heating and climate control is a logical step. "Supporting greenhouses with professional heating systems not only protects the product; it makes your revenue stream uninterrupted and predictable by allowing you to control the harvest time."
"These developments, which prove that the integration of technology and engineering in agriculture is no longer an option but a necessity, stand as one of the strongest reflexes the Turkish agricultural sector has developed against the climate crisis."
For more information:
Enorpa
Bulut Güneş, Mechanical Engineer
[email protected]
enorpa.com
