Olive harvest in Avdan District of Manisa's Soma district continues under the shadow of falling product prices and increasing costs.
Stating that the price of oil olives per kilogram dropped to 10 liras, the workers said that the producers could not pay their wages because they could not sell their products. Most retired workers explained that they work to make ends meet and give pocket money to their grandchildren.
Olive workers stated that the decrease in product prices was directly reflected on them and that they did not receive their wages even though they worked some days.
A worker said, "We collect olives, but it does not make money. However, we say that it should not remain in the branch. If the boss wins, he will give it to us, if he does not win, we will not get it. We come here for our grandchildren, not for ourselves."
A retired female worker stated that her salary is not enough to survive and said, "We have to work. We cannot give money to our grandchildren, we cannot buy what we want. Sometimes we go to other doors to avoid being seen by our grandchildren."
Another female worker, whose salary decreased after losing her husband, said that she collected olives to give pocket money to her grandchildren. The female worker said, "My grandchildren are with me. When she says 'Grandma, I'm going' on the way to school, I want to give her a penny, I want her to have bagel money. I'm coming to give her pocket money."
"WE GET UP AT FIVE IN THE MORNING, WE CAN'T DRINK A CUP OF TEA"
Workers stated that they had difficulty meeting even their most basic needs due to the increasing cost of living. A female worker said, "We get up at five in the morning and work here. We rebel, but no one hears our voices. Olives are cheap. The bosses cannot sell the olives, and our bosses cannot give us money."
Another female worker stated that although her daughter was accepted to the university in Sinop, she could not start her education due to accommodation and living expenses, and said, "We could not send her to the dormitory because there was no dormitory available. How will I send my child to school with a monthly income of 20 thousand liras? We are very sad, but there is nothing we can do."
A retired worker said that families who lived on farming in the past have difficulty meeting their basic needs today and said, "My father raised us as farmers. My father used to earn as much as people's monthly income by selling vegetables on Wednesdays. But now we cannot feed ourselves."
“I DON'T HAVE A THOUSAND LIRA IN MY POCKET, I COLLECT CANS AT NIGHT"
A retired male worker working in the olive harvest said that he rented out 14-15 thousand liras of his 25 thousand 500 liras salary and that he collected scrap and tin at night to make ends meet.
The worker said:
"I collect tin cans from outside at night to pay my electricity bills, my water bills and to make ends meet. Today, I don't have a thousand liras in my pocket. I text my friends to buy bread in the morning. One day one of us brings tea, one day one brings bagels, the other day one brings cheese. We get together and eat like this. I am hungry, my friend is hungry. We are hungry, we are exhausted. When we go to the coastal areas to pluck grass, to pluck grass, to work as a farmhand, we enter the dining halls, my retired brother is the dishwasher in the kitchens, I also wash dishes. People coming from abroad are living happily. How will I, who earn 25 thousand 500 liras, pay 14-15 thousand liras and go to the market once a week and make a living?
Another 66-year-old retired worker said about his financial difficulties: "I am retired from the state. You see, there is no fat in the tomato paste we eat. I am rebelling now, I cannot feed myself. I have been through so much, but we have come to this point."
PRODUCER: THE COST OF PICKING OLIVES IS 20 LIRA per KILOGRAM
Olive producer Ertuğrul Özcan stated that they harvest 15 thousand to 20 thousand olive trees every year in Avdan District and said that increasing input costs and falling prices put the producer in a difficult situation.
Stating that diesel fuel and fertilizer prices have increased and olive prices have fallen to their lowest levels in the last four years, Özcan said that while wholesale olive oil prices were around 300-350 lira in previous years, this year they are in the 200-250 lira range.
Emphasizing that production costs cannot be covered, Özcan said, "It is not possible for farmers to earn money here. The cost of collecting olives per kilogram reaches 20 liras. Olives for oil today are 25 liras. This is just the cost of collecting. It has fertilizer, diesel oil, pruning, and plowing the garden. It is not possible to get out of this business this way."
Stating that labor costs increased by 50-60 percent compared to the previous year, Özcan said that workers were paid between 1,500 and 2,500 liras per day this year.
Stating that the price decrease experienced by the producers is not reflected on the market shelves to the same extent, Özcan said, "When the prices of olive oil and olives decrease, the burden of this falls only on the producer. Since the prices have decreased for the producer, this should also be reflected in the markets so that the consumer can see that the prices have really decreased."
