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Meeting the diverse needs of Türkiye’s confectionary and agriculture industries
Türkiye’s business-friendly regulatory environment, skilled labour market, and prime location embody a massive opportunity for global investors. According to the U.S. Department of State, Türkiye has one of the most liberal regimes for FDI amongst OECD members. Supported by 500,000 metric tons of sugar imports and USD 2.6 billion worth of domestic sugar production, revenue from Türkiye’s confectionary industry will reach USD 19.7 billion in 2023, according to Statista. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, sugar buyers have prioritised supply consistency over price competitiveness, rewarding rapid growth to companies able to provide reliability regardless of market fl uctuations.
“Founded in 2014 to meet Türkiye’s confectionery industry’s need for sugar as their primary ingredient, Team Agro – formerly Team Logistics until 2021 – is Türkiye’s largest imported sugar supplier and a leading regional player in agricultural commodity services. We cater to the sugar raw material needs of producers, ensuring a stable supply for their operations.”
In just a few years, Team Agro has achieved a staggering 75-80% share of Türkiye’s sugar trade market and a 6% share of the global market. By volume alone – 1 million tons in 2022 – Team Agro ranks amongst the top ten sugar traders in the world. The key, says its CEO, Selim Oğul, is exclusive contracts with refi neries from around the world, including Morocco, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Brazil: “We serve about 95% of Türkiye’s large confectionary companies, from high-quality to cost-effective, sugar, and our extensive network and supply chain allows us to maintain a robust and reliable operation. Moreover, we store our products in warehouses and maintain stock, ensuring we can meet customers’ needs promptly.”
Oğul says his biggest focus now is “to ensure long-term sustainability” through diversifying beyond the sugar trade. In 2021, with changes in partnership structure and the appointment of Selim Oğul as CEO, Team Agro expanded the portfolio to include agricultural products such as wheat, barley, and corn, alongside sugar trading, achieving a remarkable success by increasing its revenue from 25 million USD to 500 million USD. Team Agro has already consolidated a large market share in Türkiye’s grain import business and recently gained a licenced warehousing with 58.000 tons of capacity in Eskişehir and Osmaniye. Also built a large Warehouse near Mersin Port – Türkiye’s main gateway to the Mediterranean Sea – built on 20,000m2 capacity. “We’ve also established a transit business and operate shipping vessels going from Argentina to Libya and India to Yemen. We’re investing in regional countries, especially in the Middle East and Africa.” In the second half of 2023, Team Agro just started with an investment of approximately 50 million USD in Geothermal Greenhouse Agriculture in Aksaray. This investment will support both the growth of our company’s exports and the sustainability of agriculture.
As industries worldwide continue to reassess their supply chains in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Türkiye has emerged as a strong EU candidate to replace the likes of China. Oğul says he is already witnessing a promising shift: “Direct investments and the infl ow of hot money have started to return; people are more inclined to view Türkiye as a country with opportunities worth exploring. It brings me great satisfaction.”