From their village origins, organic markets have expanded into Istanbul and other cities, despite high costs and bureaucratic headaches.
Organic farming in Turkey began to take off in the 1990s when individual growers began looking for ways to meet the growing demand for their produce. Farmer Victor Ananias sold brown rice, olive oil, and herbs at his stand at the outdoor market in Bodrum, then still more of a village than the heaving tourist resort of today.
While most of Turkey’s food still comes from pesticide-heavy conventional farms, the association Ananias founded is working to make organic food accessible to everyone. Called Bugday, or “wheat,” for his father’s windmill-powered wheat farm, the association operates 100% Ecological Markets in Istanbul and two other cities, not just as a business but with the goal of building a fairer, more inclusive food system where healthy, chemical-free produce is within reach for all.
“Some producers have been selling at our market for 20 years,” says Leyla Aslan, Bugday Association’s board chair.
Organic markets and farms in Turkey are challenging the industrial food system by reimagining how food is grown and distributed. Bugday’s innovation was to work closely with local authorities and the Ministry of Agriculture to simplify the red tape involved in running organic markets and the cost of obtaining an organic farming certificate. These markets connect consumers directly with small-scale farmers. Through these networks and persistent advocacy, Bugday is quietly proving that a viable alternative to supermarket food is not only possible but already taking root.
Ananias, while still in Bodrum, went on to open a vegetarian restaurant in 1992, where farmers and the public met for discussions and seminars. Ten years later he founded Bugday, and the first 100% Ecological Market opened in Istanbul’s Sisli municipality in 2006.
There are now five markets in Istanbul and two other cities, offering produce from organic farmers who meet Bugday’s strict selection criteria. Applications are taken annually from new farmers who wish to join the network.
Chemical Free-for-All
While the 100% Ecological Markets offer a promising alternative, conventional farming remains the norm across Turkey. According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, pesticide use in the country rose nearly 40% between 2013 and 2022. The ministry has banned or restricted several highly hazardous pesticides. However, inspections are rare, and transparency about enforcement is lacking.
Although organic agriculture briefly expanded, going from less than half a percent of total farmland in 2008 to 2.7% in 2018, it declined to just 1.5% by 2022, showing that organic farming still makes up only a small share of agriculture in Turkey.
When the first 100% Ecological Market opened for business in Istanbul, the goal was to bring organic farmers and consumers together under one roof by collaborating with local authorities to establish a dedicated space for the market. Aslan explains that when Bugday started approaching municipalities to secure a location for the farmers’ market, they already had a database of organic farmers through TaTuTa – a United Nations Development Program project to promote ecological farming with financial support, volunteer labor, and knowledge-sharing with farming families in Turkey who relied on organic agriculture for their livelihood.
So, once an agreement was reached with the Sisli municipality, the association was able to help farmers from across Turkey to come and sell their produce directly to urban consumers. Today, 100% Ecological Markets open for business on Fridays in the Bakirkoy municipality on the European side, Saturdays in the inner-city Sisli neighborhood, and Sundays in Kartal on the Asian side of the city.
Back then, all organic produce coming into Istanbul had to be checked in at the wholesale vegetable market, a facility where, by law, all produce arriving from other cities had to pass inspection before being sold. But organic produce shouldn’t come into contact with conventional produce, as this can compromise its organic integrity, Aslan says. “Thanks to Victor’s lobbying efforts, we succeeded in adding an article to the regulation that exempts organic produce from having to enter the wholesale market.”
The amended Agriculture Ministry rule was crucial in ensuring that organic produce could safely reach consumers, Aslan says. Once the regulation took effect, the first 100% Ecological Market could open.
Keeping It Clean
To obtain an organic farming certificate, producers must first apply to an independent certification body authorized by the Ministry of Agriculture, then submit detailed documentation and undergo on-site inspections, residue tests, and traceability checks to ensure compliance with organic standards. Only then are they issued a “master certificate” and allowed to label their products with the official organic license.
Aslan notes that the master certificates are renewed annually. But more proof is needed. During the harvest, the certification body issues another document known as the product certificate, which verifies that an inspection was carried out at the time of harvesting. “We only allow the sale of organic produce with both the master certificate and most importantly, the product certificate,” she says.
Bugday takes the responsibility of providing organic produce to customers very seriously. Duygu Saatli, the food engineer for the 100% Ecological Markets, visits the market every Sunday to ensure everything is in order and listens to any concerns farmers may have.
Serap Karaali has been a regular customer at the Sisli market for the past 20 years. With a history of cancer in her family, she says doctors advised them to consume only organic produce. That’s what initially brought her to the market and has kept her coming back – despite the high cost of organic products. Karaali says it hasn’t always been easy to afford them, despite her commitment to healthy eating.
Lab testing occasionally finds contaminants in the produce, leading to an investigation, Saatli says. “Is it a failure in the certification process, or is there intentional deception?” If pesticide residues are found, the vendor’s license to operate a stand in the market is suspended.
Aslan says that in most cases tests detect chemicals when farmers mix in conventional produce, often due to shortfalls in their organic harvest. When they cannot meet expected yields, some may be tempted to claim it all as organic.
Progress Through an Obstacle Course
A major bottleneck for all sellers of organic produce in Turkey is the price. Organic foods remain out of reach for people on lower incomes. This may be part of the reason why organic farming is still not widespread in the country. Certification requirements further increase costs, and the government does not provide substantial support. Compared to conventional farming, it also demands significantly more labor and care.
There is potential for growth, however, in this segment of the food market, as Bugday’s experience shows.
“At first, there were only 24 stands and 13 farmers,” Aslan says. “Now, there are more than 300 stands and over 100 producers come to the Sisli market.”
Despite this growth, the project faces several limitations. One major issue is the temptation among some farmers to mix conventional produce into their organic stock, often due to crop failures or lower yields. Another challenge is that some producers want to sell at excessively high prices.
Going chemical-free has its own hazards for farmers. Fruit in particular is notoriously challenging to grow organically, as Aslan notes: “For example, this year, one of our producers lost their entire cherry harvest due to a worm infestation.”
Finally, although the number of organic certification bodies has increased, obtaining certification remains prohibitively expensive for many farmers.
Small-scale organic farmers often struggle without backing from local or national governments. In this context, initiatives like the 100% Ecological Markets that operate in collaboration with municipalities play a crucial role, says senior development expert Coskun Serefoglu. “Small-scale organic farmers need government support when it comes to marketing their produce. That’s why I find 100% Ecological Markets and their collaboration with municipalities so important.”
Although there are other markets in Turkey that sell certified organic produce, the 100% Ecological Markets stand out as the only ones that formally cooperate both with municipalities and the Ministry of Agriculture. This dual institutional backing provides farmers with consistent access to infrastructure, regular certification checks, and stable selling conditions that most other organic markets, which operate independently or with only partial municipal support, cannot offer.
According to Serefoglu, another advantage of the 100% Ecological Markets is that they bring a level of standardization to this niche market. “In an era where we are also discussing smart agriculture, I believe these markets could lead the way in improving consumer access to organic food and good agricultural products through technology, in terms of traceability and standardization.” He adds that increasing organic production, getting more farmers to go organic, and raising consumer awareness are all interconnected.
Initiatives like the Bugday Association are vital for small-scale organic farmers, who struggle to get their products to markets, Serefoglu says. Unlike supermarkets, where branded organic produce is usually very expensive, the 100% markets offer direct access to consumers, allowing farmers to maintain profit margins and build trust around their products. Every farmer displays a card at their stand showing where their produce comes from and where their farm is located, reinforcing transparency and traceability for consumers.
Serefoglu points to Turkish Statistical Institute data showing that the number of organic farmers and their combined production rose steeply from the early 2000s. By 2016, production reached 2,500,000 tons, and the number of farmers peaked two years later at about 80,000. Yet more recent years have seen a notable decline in both farmland and producer numbers. Likely factors behind the decline include structural challenges and rising prices – inflation spiked from 12% before the COVID pandemic to above 70% in 2022, and it remains stubbornly high.
High prices organic farmers pay for inputs are a long-standing problem, Serefoglu says, an observation confirmed by several 100% Ecological Markets vendors who complained that organic seeds are expensive and hard to find.
Yet high profits are not what drive people to switch professions to organic farming, Serefoglu reasons. While organic farming is rarely the most lucrative path, these individuals found shared values and a sense of purpose working in harmony with nature. “Otherwise, they could have stayed in better-paying jobs. But they chose organic farming because it reflects their values and commitment to the environment.”
Kubra Uzel is one of those people. A former pharmacist, she became a full-time organic farmer after retirement. For 15 years she has been selling apricots, lavender, wheat, and almonds from the Gelibolu (Gallipoli) district at her stand in the Sisli organic market.
Uzel enjoys the lifestyle change from working behind a pharmacy counter to raising organic foods. Her chosen new profession does bring challenges, though. One of the biggest she faced in this journey was the proximity of conventional farms to her own field. Surrounded by farmers using chemical-based methods, she had to relocate her crops further inland to protect them from contamination.
For Uzel, organic farming feels like maintaining a “rescued territory,” a space where no chemicals are used. But this freedom comes with its own difficulties: since she avoids pesticides, all the pests in the area are drawn to her field, and dealing with them organically is no easy task.
“There is no single right way to do organic farming,” Aslan says. “Each geographical region requires a unique approach.” Methods used by a farmer in the northern city of Bursa to control pests, for instance, might not work in Antalya on the warm Mediterranean coast. These regional variations complicate knowledge-sharing between farmers.
Adding to the challenges, Aslan points out a significant gap in institutional support. “There are no universities that give active guidance to farmers facing these problems. Academics tend to focus on theory, but what’s missing are professionals who can bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical, on-the-ground experience in organic farming.”
She also stresses that the lack of government support limits innovation. “If there were government backing, farmers could afford to experiment and enter trial phases in their production without fear of financial loss,” she says.
Regional Variations
The seasonal organic market in Kayseri opened in 2013, through a partnership between the Bugday Association and local agriculturalists. One of the key figures behind the initiative was Dr. Yesim Bekyurek, an agricultural engineer then working at the Kayseri Forestry Directorate. Over the course of a year, she dedicated herself to bringing together organic farmers from across the province of Kayseri, located in central Anatolia near the Cappadocia region. A year later, the market opened its doors.
Unlike year-round markets in Istanbul, Kayseri’s organic market operates only during the harvest season from early August to November. “We sell when we have produce, and we close when it runs out,” Bekyurek explains, emphasizing that the region’s harsher climate makes a permanent market unfeasible.
Pricing is regulated by the market operator, and, Bekyurek says, organic goods are offered at prices close to or only slightly above conventional alternatives. “We aim to make organic food accessible to everyone,” she says.
Bekyurek attributes their market’s stable prices and consistent supply to long-term collaboration with the same group of farmers since 2013. Over time, she explains, the growing conditions have improved at these farms. With fewer pests and cleaner, more fertile soil, yields have become more reliable. “Now we experience much less product loss,” she says.
She also points out that the region’s altitude provides an advantage, even if the growing season is shorter, saying, “We don’t face the same problems [with pests] like the provinces of Antalya or Adana on the southern coast do.”
The Tortuous Paper Trail
Leyla Aslan of the 100% Ecological Markets emphasizes their crucial role in sustaining organic farming: “Without these markets, many producers wouldn’t have anywhere to sell their organically certified products,” she says. Scarcity of sales points leaves many organic growers unable to market their produce despite going through the demanding and costly certification process.
To reduce expenses, Bugday facilitates group certification for farmers in Kayseri, which significantly lowers the cost per producer. This model not only helps farmers remain in organic production but also allows the market to keep prices reasonable for consumers.
Another organic market that started thanks to the 100% Ecological Markets project is located in the city of Izmit, 100 kilometers east of Istanbul. The market began in 2016 through a collaboration between the Kocaeli Ecological Life Association and Bugday.
“These markets help farmers meet consumers and vice versa because otherwise, it’s very difficult for small producers to both grow and sell their products in a designated marketplace,” says Mustafa Tengerek, founder of the Kocaeli Ecological Life Association.
Tengerek, himself an organic farmer, explains that the association allows him to obtain group certification with other member farmers. “We are all small producers,” he says. “Our farms are around five to six acres of land each.”
In the beginning, producers traveled from around the country, even from Mersin in the far southeast. However, the high cost of transportation made this unfeasible in the long term. Now, the market mainly features local producers, or vendors who sell organic products grown by other certified producers across Turkey, Tengerek explains.
Like others in the organic business, the high price of growing and marketing their produce is a major challenge. “We’re in contact with Bugday about this,” he says. “For example, organic green beans cost around 150–200 Turkish lira [3–4 euros], while conventional ones are only 25–40 lira.”
Tengerek himself began the process of obtaining organic certification for his hazelnuts three seasons ago.
“Now they will officially be certified organic. Regular hazelnuts sell for about 117 lira, and I sell mine for 150. Each farmer in our association will pay 10,000 lira this year for certification. We don’t want to sell green beans for 250 lira, we’re happy selling for 150 as long as we can cover the certification costs.”
He adds that group certification significantly lowers expenses. “If I had to certify my products on my own, I would pay around 20,000 lira. But thanks to group certification, I only paid 10,000.”
Antalya-based independent journalist Sevilay Nur Saraclar has written about topics such as human rights and the environmental issues for outlets including Journo, Inside Turkey, Bianet and Scrolli.
