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Turkish authorities detained 33 executives of major produce distribution companies on Tuesday as part of a sweeping investigation into alleged price manipulation in the fresh fruit and vegetable market, while eight other suspects remained at large.
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched the investigation through its Organized Crime Investigation Bureau, and search warrants covered 109 workplaces and residences across 22 provinces, focusing on alleged excessive pricing practices in the fresh produce trade, according to a statement from Justice Minister Akin Gurlek.
Authorities alleged that some major suppliers used their market dominance to make supply appear lower than it was, inflate costs, and create false expenses through forged producer receipts, generating illicit profits by pushing fresh produce prices higher.
The prosecutor's office said that the investigation was launched based on reports examining the suspects’ transaction volumes in the fresh fruit and vegetable trade. The Tax Inspection Board also took statements from 1029 farmers to trace how much producers received for their crops and how the products moved to suppliers.
Reports dated July 14 and Sept. 3 concluded that some suppliers allegedly inflated the purchase prices of fresh produce in fake producer receipts, restricted supply by understating the amount of goods available, overstated costs, or unnecessarily lengthened the supply chain.
According to the prosecutor’s office, investigators determined that these methods were used to push prices upward in the fresh produce market and contribute to excessive pricing, based on both farmers’ statements and examinations of suppliers’ books and documents.
"No part of the chain from the field to the table will be allowed to become a source of unfair profit at the expense of producers and consumers," Minister Gurlek wrote on X, thanking the authorities involved in the investigation and the operations.
Fresh produce trade in Türkiye typically involves several stages between farmers and consumers, including traders, wholesale market commission agents, transporters and retailers.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) has previously noted that many of the functions involved in supplying, transporting, storing, packaging and sorting fresh produce are handled by intermediaries, which can lengthen the marketing chain and increase costs.
The role of intermediaries has long been debated in fresh food pricing, as several central bank studies have found that shortening the chain can reduce wholesale prices, although lower wholesale costs do not necessarily translate into lower retail prices for consumers.
Fresh food prices also remain one of the most visible pressure points for consumers amid high inflation, with sharp monthly price increases pushing overall inflation higher at several points this year.
In January and February, monthly price changes for fresh vegetables and fruit reached 22% and 17.6%, respectively, while annual price growth stood at 27.4% in August, helped by favorable weather conditions.
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