| Turkey's
proximity to Europe, the Middle East and North Africa gives it easy
access to large markets through the Black Sea to the north, the
Aegean Sea to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the south.
Likewise, Turkey's internal market, which is characterized by high
population growth rates and growing incomes, should also experience
rapid growth in demand for more food of higher quality.
Thus, agriculture in Turkey holds the
promise of making a major contribution to Turkey's economic
development. The principal objectives of the Turkish agricultural
policy are set out in successive five year development plans. These
are to stabilize agricultural prices; to provide adequate and stable
incomes for those working in agriculture; to meet the nutritional
needs of a growing population; to increase yields and outputs; to
reduce the vulnerability of production to weather conditions; to
develop rural areas; to promote the application of modern
agricultural techniques and to develop the export potential of
agriculture. As a result of the latter, agricultural exports have
expanded rapidly over the period of the last decade.
Since its initial reform efforts in
the early 1980's, Turkey has made significant strides in opening up
its borders to imports and reducing controls on exports. Turkey has
made moves to harmonize its trade policies with those of the
European Union and the European Free Trade Association and has
entered into new regional trading arrangements.
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