In Düzce northwestern Türkiye, the shrinking of pasture areas due to climate change has led to a decrease in the number of buffaloes.
Due to the abundance of pasture and wetland areas, Düzce ranks prominently in buffalo farming. In 2011, the ministry launched the "Anatolian Buffalo Breed Improvement" project, including the 76-hectare Efteni Lake wetland area.
By providing young animals, financial support and feed incentives to local farmers engaged in livestock farming, the region saw a 100% increase in buffalo numbers by 2020.
Many families in the area sustain themselves by producing buffalo milk and yogurt. However, consecutive floods over three years, attributed to climate change, have disrupted the milestone migration.
The "mile drought" in the region has also resulted in a decrease in the number of animals, prompting the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to undertake various projects to increase the animal population and sustain the sector.
Murat Turan Küçük, an agricultural engineer responsible for the "Anatolian Buffalo Breeding by People" project at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies (TAGEM), said that TAGEM is working to increase the number of buffaloes in Düzce.
Küçük pointed out that the buffalo population and farming have regressed nationwide over the past two years due to drought and floods caused by climate change.
"When our project started, there were around 75,000-80,000 buffaloes in our country, and we reached 170,000-180,000. However, there has been a decrease in our buffalo count in the last two years due to environmental and economic factors. The destruction of pastures in our region due to floods hinders the development of buffalo farming," he said.
Küçük emphasized that buffalo farming relies on pasture, stating: "As pasture areas shrink, buffalo numbers decrease. To sustain the sector, we need to rehabilitate pastures by increasing beneficial grasses for animals, making environmental improvements and opening water channels."
Küçük stated that support for breeders continues under the TAGEM project, saying: "We provide TL 4,000 ($120) for calving buffaloes, TL 2,500 ($75) for single animals and TL 3,750 ($113) for selected breeding animals in our project. Our breeders are satisfied with this support, but due to insufficient pastures, our operations are shrinking. High costs also contribute to the decrease in buffalo numbers.
"Flooding is a natural disaster, but we can take precautions against it," he said.
Cafer Çelik, president of the Düzce Buffalo Breeders Union, said that buffalo farming has been practiced in the region for about 150 years.
Çelik explained that buffalo breeders have started to face difficulties in recent years, especially due to the floods in 2022 and 2023, which caused a decrease in pasture areas. "We want a little more living space for our animals," he said.
Çelik stated that efforts are being made by relevant institutions in this direction, expressing the need for more precautions to prevent flood disasters.
Çelik emphasized that buffalo farming has been passed down from generation to generation in the region, adding that the younger generation does not want to engage in this business due to the difficulties they face.
