In the districts of Ekinözü and Afşin in Kahramanmaraş, southern Türkiye, farmers are turning unproductive and barren lands into profitable strawberry fields. Due to its high altitude and cold winter conditions, Afşin and Ekinözü are nicknamed the "Siberia of the Mediterranean."
Farmers in these areas traditionally struggled to yield crops, mainly limited to wheat due to the arid conditions. However, with initiatives like the Young Farmer Project starting in 2017, farmers like Murat Seyfi began cultivating strawberries on 6 hectares of initially unproductive land, expanding to 15 hectares.
Murat Seyfi recalled the devastating earthquakes on Feb. 6, 2023, which severely impacted the region, describing it as a catastrophe affecting their homes, lives and businesses. Despite these setbacks, they persevered, focusing on strawberry cultivation as an alternative.
The strawberries grown in the region not only cater to daily consumption but also supply jam factories. Seyfi highlighted that a significant portion of their spring harvest is sent to cities like Sivas, Gaziantep, Malatya and Adıyaman, while the rest is used in local ice cream factories.
Necmettin Tanbay, a retired teacher in Afşin, initially began strawberry cultivation as a hobby and achieved remarkable success. Utilizing 15 hectares of barren land in Anzorey Village, he experimented with various crops before finding success with strawberries.
Tanbay now harvests approximately 75 tons of strawberries annually and distributes them to regions such as Çorum, Amasya, Samsun, Düzce and chain supermarkets.
Tanbay also opens his fields directly to consumers, allowing them to pick and purchase strawberries themselves, which has been well-received by the community, especially children who enjoy picking and eating fresh strawberries. Tanbay expressed his plans to expand his strawberry production to 50 hectares and explore export opportunities.
Both Seyfi and Tanbay emphasized that strawberry cultivation has become a lucrative sector in these challenging climatic conditions, offering multiple harvests per year and supporting local economies through direct sales and industrial processing.