By Olga Rosca
As demand for pulses spikes around the world in response to the coronavirus outbreak, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is helping the Turkish producer Yayla to increase its production.
The Bank is providing a €25 million(US$27.26million) working capital loan to finance the company’s day-to-day operations.
EBRD Managing Director for Turkey, Arvid Tuerkner said: “As consumers across the globe are stocking up on food essentials, we have seen dry beans and other pulses as well as Yayla’s ready-made meals flying off store shelves here in Turkey. The EBRD’s working capital loan will help Yayla meet the rising demand not only at home but also abroad.”
Yayla Agro is one of the leading producers of pulses and rice in Turkey.
Together with TaiwanICDF, we’ve helped them launch a new range of innovative fast and healthy food. We’ve also given them guidance on how to improve their corporate governance too.
With an overall capacity of 1 million tonnes per year, the company trades with more than 100 countries worldwide.
The chairman of the Yayla’s board of directors, Hasan Gümüş commented: “Our easily accessible, healthy and cost-effective products meet the demands of a changing lifestyle and consumption habits. We will continue investing in healthy foods and are glad to be working with the EBRD again.”
EBRD Director for Agribusiness Natalya Zhukova added: “We are happy to continue supporting Yayla. It has become a true pioneer in Turkey’s ready-to-eat sector thanks to a state-of-the-art production facility the EBRD financed in 2017. Our new loan will help Yayla maintain smooth operations, bringing its healthy foods to households in Turkey and abroad.”
In 2017, Yayla launched the production of ready-to-eat meals with a €20 million loan from the EBRD and the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF) for the construction of a production facility in Mersin, south-eastern Turkey. The products were well received and helped popularise innovative and healthy foods in Turkey.
The new financing is part of the EBRD’s efforts to help countries where it invests combat the impact of the coronavirus and support the recovery. The EBRD stands ready to provide support worth €21 billion over the 2020-21 period.
The support includes a Resilience Framework for existing clients offering short-term liquidity, working capital and restructuring of exposure. The EBRD is also providing trade finance and an emergency support programme for vital infrastructure providers. The Bank is also ramping up its local currency, capital markets and equity offers.
The EBRD is a major investor in Turkey. Since 2009 it has invested €12.4 billion through 311 projects in various sectors of the country’s economy, with almost all investment in the private sector. The EBRD’s €7 billion portfolio in Turkey is the largest among the 38 economies where the Bank invests.
