Ahmet Ali Koç

Potential impacts on agricultural commodity markets of an EU enlargement to Turkey

This report provides an in-depth model based quantitative assessment of the potential impacts of an EU enlargement to Turkey for agricultural commodity markets in Turkey and the EU. For the purpose of the study a detailed dataset and modelling structure for the main agricultural commodities in the EU candidate country Turkey has been developed and integrated into the overall AGMEMOD modelling framework.

Food Quality Systems in Turkey: Perspectives in Terms of Food Defence

The chapter summarizes the current food quality systems in Turkey from the perspective of food defense. Recently Turkey has formally adopted a number of typical elements of food safety regulations and control systems in the accession period to EU and there are developments dealing with food safety and a few available empirical analyses of food safety applications in Turkey, but still there is a lack of comprehensive study summarizing the efforts. The developments that signal some of the more formal approaches to deal with food defense are shared and a few examples of food safety applications in Turkey are mentioned together with discussing issues about food quality. The policies supported for food safety and security, current situation, related legislations are used to provide information as current indicators. On the other hand food defense is a vital and relevantly “hot” topic as all societies are crucially dependent upon the food supply; therefore, its disruption is an obvious prime target for terrorism.

Concentration in food retailing and anti-competitive practices in Turkey

Abstract As seen in many developing countries, concentration and globalisation have substantially increased in food retailing in Turkey. Foreign direct investment, incentives to reduce informal economy through modern retailing, income, education, economic crises and urbanisation are the main drivers for structural change of the retail supply chain. Market shares of global retailers have increased in general and also food sub-sectors. The restructuring and concentration in food retailing have changed the marketing system and conditions facing firms. Concentration is also expected to increase in the future. With increasing concentration, anti-competitive practices have appeared in the food supply chain in Turkey: listing fees, shelf fees, advertising and announcing fees, discount pressure, unconditional product restoration and forces for own private label product package have been commonly used as anti-competitive practices. Based on the interviews and literature survey and news gathered from newspapers, it is found that several anti-competitive practices are executed by supermarkets in Turkey when these practices are compared with the anti-competitive practices determined by the UK Competition Commission (2000). It is observed that at least 16 of 52 practices are exercised by supermarkets against the suppliers. Moreover, price flexing and sales below cost can be a reflection of the monopoly power in the consumer market segment.

The Economic Determinants of Food Security in the MENA Region

Thispaperaimstoanalysethedeterminantsof thefoodinsecurityexaminingtherelationshipof importanteconomic,socialandnaturalfactorswithanoverallfoodinsecurityindexthatderivedby dividingthefoodimportsvaluetothesumoftotalexportsandthenetremittanceinflows.Overall analysisismadebyemployingpanel-datamethodsusingadatasetthatcovers18MENAcountries andTurkeyfortheperiodof1990-2014.Empricalresultssupporttheevidenceoftheharmfuleffect ofprice increaseson foodsecurity.Furthermore, significanceofeducation relatedvariablesand freshwaterwithdrawalsindicatethat theregionhashadbenefitfromnearly30yearsinvestment oneducationandintensivewaterexploitation,althoughpoorwatermanagementandgreatwasteof irrigationwillmostlikelyhavenegativeeffectsonfoodsecurityinthenearfuture. KEywoRDS Determinants of Food Security in MENA, Emprical Analysis of Macro Level Food Security, Food Security in MENA, MENA