Apricot producers were offered a credit facility amounting to 75% of their product's value

While the first interest-free loan was given to a producer in the city, Ramazan Özcan, Chairman of the Commodity Exchange, expressed his hope that all producers will benefit from this important opportunity for apricot producers.

In Malatya, which leads the world in dried apricot production, the licensed warehouse implemented provides many advantages to producers. Producers who bring their products to the licensed warehouse built by the Commodity Exchange and Fırat Development Agency in 2020 and currently operated by LİDAŞ are now able to receive interest-free loans if they meet the conditions. Producers who obtain an Electronic Product Certificate (ELÜS) from the warehouse can get interest-free loans from Ziraat Bank amounting to 75% of their product's value. Mehmet Dursun, an apricot producer from Akçadağ, was the first to use this method, receiving an interest-free loan with a 9-month repayment period for 75% of the value of the product he delivered to the warehouse.

Ramazan Özcan, Chairman of the Malatya Commodity Exchange, stated that they have made intensive efforts to ensure that apricot producers benefit from licensed warehouses and apply for the opportunities provided. He emphasized that today is a significant day for apricot producers, noting, "For the first time since we started licensed storage for dried apricots in Malatya, an Akçadağ producer has obtained the right to use a 9-month, zero-interest loan from Ziraat Bank through an electronic sales certificate."

Highlighting that this is the first time this loan opportunity has been used in dried apricots, Özcan said, "Today is actually a milestone. Our producer will obtain an interest-free loan from our bank amounting to approximately 75% of the product's value. However, it is important to note that this system is not applicable to all products. It is specifically for products that have met the criteria and received an electronic certificate from the licensed warehouse in the 1st Organized Industrial Zone of Malatya Commodity Exchange. It is a system applied to products that meet the criteria in the classification laboratory. We urge all producers to benefit from this warehouse and to apply to our Ziraat Bank branches with the electronic sales certificates of their delivered products to take advantage of this interest-free loan support."

In addition to the interest-free loan opportunity, Özcan mentioned that producers could also benefit from support such as transportation, laboratory, withholding tax, and warehouse rental assistance. "Thus, producers will benefit in every area supported by the Ministry in accordance with the regulations for licensed dried apricot warehouses. I also congratulate our farmers who have achieved significant production quality with this support for dried apricots for the first time in Turkey."

Apricot producer Mehmet Dursun expressed his gratitude to everyone involved, stating that he received interest-free loan support amounting to 75% of the current market value of the product he left at the licensed warehouse.