THIS REPORT CONTAINS ASSESSMENTS OF COMMODITY AND TRADE ISSUES MADE BY USDA STAFF AND NOT NECESSARILY STATEMENTS OF OFFICIAL U.S. GOVERNMENT POLICY
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The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Office in Turkey organized a Forest Products Buyers Mission to the United States in cooperation with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in August 2017. Representatives of five leading wood products importers from
Turkey traveled to North Carolina for the program. Sales reports following the mission show that the buyers have already agreed to buy a total of twenty eight containers of hardwood and softwood lumber with a total value of $1,050,000. Additional negotiations between the Turkish participants and North Carolina firms are continuing with sales prospects for additional logs and lumber.
Ibrahim Sirtioglu, Senior Agricultural Marketing Specialist Elizabeth Leonardi, Agricultural Attaché
SP1 - Expand International Marketing Opportunities Export Accomplishments - Marketing, Trade Events and Shows
Sales Mission Evaluation
Over One Million USD in Lumber Sales from Buyers
Mission
Ankara
Turkey
TR7047 11/9/2017 Public
Over One Million USD in Lumber Sales to Turkey from USDA Buyers Mission
Wood products, lumber, veneer, and parquet demand is
increasing in Turkey due to Turkey’s growing population and new housing projects. Turkey’s cities continue to grow as people migrate to urban areas. Additionally, there is an increase in furniture demand for both domestic and export markets, which is also driving the growth in Turkish consumption of lumber. Turkey’s furniture exports have been increasing in recent years, reaching $3 billion in 2016.
Neighboring countries, such as Iraq, other Middle Eastern countries, North Africa, and Central Asia are the major export destinations for Turkish furniture.
In the last ten years, the United States has become an important supplier to Turkey for forest products. American forest products exports to Turkey hit a record in 2015 at $125 million. USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Office in Turkey has played a vital role in expanding this market, in collaboration with the state departments of agriculture from states which produce forest products, as well as the forest products industry groups, such as the American Hardwood Export Council and
American Softwoods.
In August 2017, FAS Turkey organized a Forest Products Buyers Mission in cooperation with the Marketing Division of the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. A total of five leading Turkish forest products importers participated in the program. They visited over fifteen lumber, log, and veneer companies in North Carolina, as well as the North Carolina Port Facility.
The Turkish buyers were impressed with North Carolina’s wood products and immediately following their visit have placed orders on a variety of products including yellow pine lumber and walnut lumber, with monthly recurring orders for the coming year. The total initial value of forest products sales from this Forest Products Buyers Mission is about $1,050,000. Beyond the initial sales reports, the relationships built during the Buyers Mission and greater awareness of high quality U.S. lumber products have formed a foundation for long term commercial relationships between U.S. and Turkish companies.
FAS Turkey will continue cooperation with forest products exporting states and organizations to increase awareness of American wood products for Turkish companies. For
additional information on the full range of U.S. wood and lumber products available, please visit American Hardwood Export Council
and American Softwoods, as well as the State of North
Carolina, or contact our USDA FAS office in Turkey directly
