32 mln tons pass through grain corridor: Minister

A total of 32 million tons of grain has been transported through the grain corridor established in an effort to mitigate potential food crises arising from the Russia-Ukraine war, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu has announced.

Uraloğlu revealed that among the 44 countries involved, Turkish-flagged ships accounted for 290 out of 987 vessels, with 224 ships docking at various ports across Türkiye. The transported goods included 13 varieties of cereals and cereal products - such as barley, wheat, corn, soybean, wheat bran, processed mixed food, sunflower seed, sunflower meal, sunflower oil and peas.

From Aug. 1, 2022, to June 20, 2023, a total of 32 million tons of grain were transported, with 3.66 million tons arriving at Turkish ports, the minister informed.

Leading the way as the top recipient was China, which received an impressive load of 7.66 million tons. Other countries heavily benefiting from this transportation network were Spain and Italy.

Uraloğlu emphasized the positive impact of the grain corridor on African countries, stating that 3.98 million tons of grain had been transported to the continent.

"The grain corridor, established with Türkiye's assurance, has proven to be highly beneficial for numerous nations. Currently, African countries account for approximately 12 percent of the total share, which has doubled in the last six months from 6 percent," he noted.

The United Nations and Türkiye brokered the Black Sea export agreement in July last year, allowing the safe shipment of Ukrainian grain to help tackle a global food crisis worsened by Moscow's war in Ukraine.

The deal has been extended three times since it was first signed for a period of 120 days, with the last one on May...