Turkish Grain Board aims to reach a capacity of more than 4 million ton in licensed warehouse at 90 points around the country. 2.5 million tons of this aim will be reached during 2018, and the rest will become operational at the end of 2019.  Turkish Grain Board hosted an event named as “Eightieth Years of TMO and Warehousing Drive Activities” in Ankara. Climbers at TMO’s warehouses opened a banner that reads “We build the dams of agriculture.” Many cities' trade organization exhibited local products at their stands. Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ahmet Eşref Fakıbaba said that the social and political stability is directly related to food safety, adding that the board played an active role in ensuring the food safety of Turkey. The minister tasted a variety of bread, which had been cooked in thousands years ago and now re-cooked thanks to TMO’s research. The minister said TMO will increase the number of its warehouse to 500. He told that the board bought 2.4 million ton products and paid 3.4 million Turkish Liras to producers. In order to meet the need for warehouses in Turkey, Fakıbaba said TMO started the process of “building licensed warehouse by the private sector through long-term leasing.” “Within this scope, it was targeted to construct a warehouse with a capacity of 4.2 million tons at 90 locations throughout the country. Warehouse construction activities will continue in the required places. Of these, 2.5 million tons will become operational in 2018 and the rest will be commissioned at the end of 2019. These are dams for grains. When there is excess, we will house products at these dams. When we have less, we will use these products. When the system is completed, 1.5 billion Turkish Liras will have been invested in Turkey, and one thousand people will be employed. If our producers deliver the product to the licensed warehouse, they will not pay the warehouse rental fee this year; we will cover this. They will not pay 25 Turkish Liras for analysis while delivering their products. They will receive 25 Turkish Liras per ton for delivery. This is what we are doing for the first time. Also, they will not pay 2 percent retention tax and 2 percent social security fee. They can use loan without any condition and guarantor through Ziraat Bank and Agriculture Loan, and we will cover the interest on this loan. For example, when a producer brings 20 tons of his/her products to this licensed warehouse with all these incentives, they can earn 1.450 Turkish liras whether they sell this product to TMO, to merchants or to the industrialists,” the minister said.   EIGHTY-YEAR ORGANIZATION İsmail Kemaloğlu, General Manager of TMO, said that the board was founded in 1938 with a capital of 55 million Turkish liras. He said the board had a stock capacity of 46 ton and bought 121 thousand tons of wheat by 5 kurus. Kemaloğlu noted that the board has a capital of 2.6 billion Turkish Liras and turned into a giant institution with a warehouse capacity of 4 million tons and bought 10 million ton per year. Kemaloğlu underlined that the government has started the largest warehousing initiative of the history with the licensed warehouse legislation and incentives accompanying it.