ISTANBUL, TURKEY — Turkey imported 6 million tonnes of feed raw materials, worth $3 billion, in 2013, according to a report by the Animal Husbandry Council that was released at the Sectoral Economy Council meeting on March 3.

The country has inadequate production to meet domestic demand. The costs of animal husbandry have increased due to the dependence on feed imports and the increasing depreciation of the Turkish lira against the U.S. dollar, the report said. 
  
President of the Turkish Feed Manufacturers' Association (TÜRK?YEM-B?R) Ülkü Karaku? said that feed raw material imports have been increasing every year and that the increase in agricultural production is failing to meet the demand for animal feed. 

Feed raw material imports have increased by 5% to 10% every year, and are expected to increase from 6 tonnes to 7 tonnes in 2014.

The Animal Husbandry Council has said to decrease raw feed material imports, feed crop plantation and efficient use of grazing lands should be promoted. The council also urged the Food, Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Ministry to devise a production plan, taking the climate and land conditions into consideration, in order to increase forage crop production.