Sümeyye Kınalı, a 39-year-old who started asparagus production in the district of Tire in Izmir three years ago, aims to export her harvest abroad. A graduate of Ankara University’s Faculty of Agriculture, Sümeyye Kınalı, who spent a long time in the USA, decided to cultivate asparagus plants she became familiar with there in Tire.

Three years ago, Kınalı and her partner Ömer Arinç started production on an 80-acre land in Eskioba neighborhood. The producer Sümeyye Kınalı recounted being born and raised in Ankara and moving to the USA after graduation.

Stating that asparagus is both produced and consumed abroad, Kınalı indicated that they decided to start production in Tire upon returning to Turkey. Kınalı expressed that Tire is an ideal place for asparagus due to its soil structure and climate, adding the following:
“Asparagus is a vegetable that is easy to produce but also has specific needs. For the first 3 years, we do not harvest asparagus. We look after it, nourish it, and water it. After 3 years, there is a 12-year harvest period. It is a very productive and perennial vegetable. Its production does not stress us out. The most important part is that it requires less water compared to other vegetables. It’s a vegetable with a broader foreign market. Its production and consumption are low in our country. Our main goal is to increase both consumption and production in our country.

We are focusing on the foreign market. Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, and England are our target countries. We receive positive feedback. They want to work with us because of the quality of our product. Asparagus has a very wide consumption area.”