About Conference

Turkey is a net importer of edible oils & oilseeds with a market size of about 4.5 million tonnes and is the 5^th largest oils & oilseeds importing country in the world after China, India, Pakistan & Japan. Turkey each year imports roughly 3.5 million tonnes of soybeans, 400,000 tonnes of sunflowerseeds, 800,000 tonnes of palm oils, 1.5 million tonnes of crude sunoil, in total around 3 million tonnes plus oil equivalent of oils & oilseeds. Turkey on the other hand exports some 2.5 million tonnes of wheat flour, 1,1 million tonnes of pasta, and 0.5 million tonnes of other products like semollina, cracked wheat, bicuits etc., mainly from the ports of Mersin and Iskenderun.

Mersin is a large city and port on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Mersin lies on the western side of Çukurova, a geographical, economic and cultural region of Turkey. It is an important hub for Turkey’s economy, with Turkey’s largest seaport located here. As urbanisation continues eastwards, a larger metropolitan region combining Mersin with Tarsus and Adana (the Adana-Mersin Metropolitan Area) is in the making with more than 3.5 million inhabitants. New Çukurova International Airport, 74 kilometres  from Mersin city centre, serves the area and it is an international connection centre. There are 6 museums within the Mersin urban area; Mersin Archaeological Museum, Mersin Atatürk Museum, Mersin Naval Museum, Mersin State Art and Sculpture Museum, Mersin Urban History Museum, Mersin Water Museum. In the western suburb of Viranşehir the remains of the ancient city of Soli/Pompeiopolis stand close to the sea. Only 2 colonnades dating from the 2^nd or 3^rd century are obvious although the outline of the agora and of a mole from the harbour can just about be made out. The Chasms of Heaven and Hell are located in the rural region of Silifke, a district in Mersin.  In mythology, there is a story of Zeus temporarily trapping Typhoon in the sinkhole. Mersin has a total of 3 modern shopping malls, from which the Forum Mersin being the largest one. Mersin Marina can also be considered a shopping centre with over 40 shops, apart from its main function as a marina. In the old city centre, you will find further shopping opportunities and bazaar-like shopping areas.

Mersin port, together with the Iskenderun port, handle a large proportion of Turkey’s wheat imports, which approach 8 million tonnes and vegetable oil imports, which exceed 1 million tonnes. These ports are also crucial for Turkey’s exports of refined packaged oil which exceed 1 million tonnes, and flour exports which surpass 3 million tonnes. The Southern and Southeastern Turkey regions are home to country’s largest flour, vegetable oil, and feed manufacturers. Naturally, Mersin is the most suitable and natural event location for these industries.

The Mersin International Port (MIP), is the mainstay of region’s economy. It is an international hub for many vessels routing to European countries, with a capacity of 7,000 marine vessels per year. Next to the port is the Mersin Free Zone, established in 1986 as the 1^st free zone in Turkey, the zone is a publicly owned centre for foreign investors, close to major markets in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, Russia and Central Asia.