Ferrero suddenly shuts down its factory in Turkey's Trabzon

Ferrero, the giant Italian chocolate company, announced that it closed down its nut factory in Trabzon province of Turkey. The price of nuts is expected to fall down in Turkey that meets 70 percent of the nut production in the world since Ferrero is seeking new nut producers around the world
Monday, 30 July 2018 22:48

The giant Italian chocolate company Ferrero that owns Nutella closed down its nut factory in Trabzon Turkey where 300 workers used to work. The company announced that the ‘contraction’ is due to regeneration and renewal.

The decision of the company is noteworthy in that Ferrero used to be the biggest nut buyer from Turkey that realizes more than 70 percent of the nut export in the world. In 2017, Ferrero Turkey head Carlo Marsili noted that their investment in Turkey would be permanent and that they plan to increase their capacity in Turkey. Ferrero had been buying nuts from Turkey for 25 years. Ferrero opened a nut factory in Manisa province of Turkey 2013 and bought the whole shares of Oltan Foods, one of the biggest nut producers in Turkey, in 2014.

ALTERNATIVE MARKETS DECREASE THE NUT PRICE IN TURKEY

Ferrero announced the decision of closing down the factory in Trabzon province of Turkey by saying “Ferrero nuts affirms its loyalty to Turkey and the regions in Turkey where the nut is grown.” However, it is also known that Ferrero is seeking new nut producers around the world, notably from Canada to Chile and Australia. It seems that the company is trying to push down the price of nut through competition among alternative markets. The decision of Ferrero to close down the factory in Trabzon came after the May-June period when the European buyers met their demand.

The amount Turkey obtained from nut exportation has declined although the total nuts exportation of Turkey increased within the last 12 months. Turkey exports around 80-85 percent of its nuts production. Although Turkey is the biggest nut producer in the world, it does not have protective regulations for the producers and in terms of nut prices. The producers have been protesting the fluctuating nut prices since the prices are left to the decision of the buyers. 

Turkey meets 68 percent of the total nut production in the world since around 77 percent of the whole nut cultivation areas are in Turkey. Nut exportation prices are of key importance for Turkey in international competition as Turkey plays a significant role in determining worldwide nut prices.