European bank backs Turkish pulse, ready-meal producer

ANKARA

Turkish pulse and ready-made food producer Yayla is getting €25 million ($27 million) in working capital from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to finance the company's day-to-day operations.

Yayla, which markets beans, vegetables, rice, and other raw and ready-made foods, will use the loan to boost production amid a pandemic-related spike in global demand for pulses, said a bank statement on Friday.

"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," said Arvid Tuerkner, the EBRD managing director for Turkey.

Tuerkner added that the company will meet the rising demand not only at home but also abroad.

With an overall capacity of 1 million tons per year, Yayla offers its products in more than 100 countries worldwide.

"Our easily accessible, healthy, and cost-effective products meet the demands of a changing lifestyle and consumption habits," said Hasan Gumus, the chairman of Yayla.

"We will continue investing in healthy foods and are glad to be working with the EBRD again.”

Natalya Zhukova, EBRD director for agribusiness, stressed that Yayla made new inroads 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," she added.

In 2017, Yayla launched the production of ready-to-eat meals with a €20 million ($22 million) loan from the EBRD and the International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF) for the construction of a production facility in Mersin in southern Turkey.