MUGLA PILOT PROJECT

“Mugla’s Local Fruit Varieties: Cultural Heritage, Database and Preservation Project” aims to make an inventory of traditional fruit varieties, which are now under threat due to the agricultural policies, globalisation, population increase and other socio-economic factors, and develop conservation strategies. 

The Fruit Heritage Working Group began field studies in Mugla in April 2007 with the support of the Ali Nihat Gokyigit Foundation (ANG). The group is continuing its work in 2008 under the sponsorship of the UN Development Programme's Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP), the Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF) and other individuals and institutions.


SCOPE

Turkey is the origin and gene center for many horticultural crops. Ten thousand years ago Neolithic peoples formed the first farming communities here, domesticating local wild species of wheat, barley, chickpeas, lentils and other staples. Many fruits, vegetables and other horticultural crops were disseminated from here. Among the fruits of economic importance which are related to our project, the fig, pomegranate, grape, olive, pistachio, hazelnut, walnut, almond, pear, quince, plum and chestnut have evolved from local wild ancestors in Anatolia. Others introduced from elsewhere, such as citrus fruits, are also regarded as heritage fruits, since they have been cultivated here for centuries and adapted to local conditions. 

It is estimated that the world has lost three quarters of its agricultural genetic diversity over the past century, so that today the world agricultural inventory for food is reduced to a hundred or so varieties. This loss is largely attributable to the global emphasis on immediate commercial gain rather than the long-term sustainability of food supplies. 

In every region of Turkey there are hundreds of fruit varieties adapted to local soil and climate conditions, resistant to pests and diseases, and so requiring little or no irrigation, chemical fertiliser or pesticide. These varieties provide a wide range of flavours, and since they mature at different times of year and include varieties that can be stored for winter use, have traditionally made it possible to eat fresh fruit for most of the year. Today, however, rising land prices, agricultural policies and the difficulty of marketing local varieties, mean that they are increasingly being replaced by standard commercial varieties, putting the future of heritage varieties at risk.

The 17th century Ottoman traveller Evliya Celebi recorded the names of dozens of fruits in every district and town he visited in Anatolia, and has been accused of exaggeration. Yet in the first year of our project it became evident that the number of local fruit varieties in Mugla exceeds the sorts of numbers he usually mentions, probably because he did not have enough time to record all of the fruit varieties in every district.