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The hazelnut is an important product in Turkey's economy as it is an important source of income for a large number of family farms and makes up around 75% of world production and 20% of total agricultural exports from Turkey. Hazelnut production has increased in recent years along with high levels of storage and expansion of planted areas from traditional steep lands to flat lands, where alternative cropping is possible. The aim of this study was to determine the major causes of these problems using an econometric model of Turkey's hazelnut sector. Estimation results of the model comply with economic theory and the equations in the model were explained well. The major implication of the model was that the high support price policy implemented for years caused an expansion in hazelnut-planted areas and an excess supply of hazelnuts. The proposed policy with respect to the results of the model is to determine a target price very close to production cost and market price so that farmers are just guaranteed to a certain price level. In addition, direct income support should be paid only to farmers who produce hazelnuts on land within the limits determined by the law and compensation payments should continue for the removal of hazelnut plantations.

A common concern with official estimates of red meat production in Turkey is that they underestimate the level of production. One of the frequently cited reasons is that unregulated slaughter is undercounted. This study uses an estimation method based on the biology of red meat production to examine the potential impact of this undercounting. The production estimates obtained for 1991-1998 using this biological-based method exceed the numbers estimated by official organizations, but fall within the range of estimates obtained from other proposed approaches to estimating red meat production.

Regional impacts of agricultural policies have emerged as a key concern in Turkey for both domestic reasons and because of Turkey's desire to join the European Union. This study uses a spatial equilibrium model to analyze the regional impacts of 2 alternative dairy support policies that are currently being considered: a price premium policy and a target price/deficiency payment policy. Both policies are found to exacerbate the post-1980 trend toward a greater share of milk produced in the more prosperous western regions of Turkey. Regional disparity in milk production increases more under the target price policy than under the price premium policy.

The proportion of Turkey's cattle that were from high-gene cattle breeds and their crosses has increased from 0.8% to 60.7% over the last four decades. While the total number of cattle declined by 1.65 million head, total milk and meat production increased by 298% and 428% to 8.91 million and 359,000 tons, respectively. At the same time, milk per cow and meat per head increased by 184% and 144% to 1688 kg and 171 kg, respectively. According to a three-stage least-square regression analysis, milk per cow and meat per head, support policies since 1972 and milk and meat prices had a significant positive impact on total milk and meat production, while feed prices had a significant and negative impact on milk and meat production. An increase in the proportion of high-gene cattle breeds and cross-breeds significantly increased milk per cow and meat per head. In contrast, the import of high-gene cattle since 1986 has not significantly affected milk per cow or meat per head.

In this study, a food demand analysis of Erzurum central district was conducted. This study differs from previous ones by the use of current data and a new model. Various elasticities computed in this study might be used in the analysis of food consumption policies. The cross-sectional and time series data used were collected by surveying 30 families once every three months from July 1995 to April 1997. Data from a total of 240 families were used to divide the families into high and low income groups. A demand analysis was done using LA/AIDS for five food groups (cereal, vegetable, fruit, meat, and milk and milk products). According to the survey results, the ratio of food expenditure to income was 38.4% and 50.2% for all and low income families respectively. Estimated coefficients satisfied all adding-up conditions. All the expenditure and own-price elasticities complied with economic theory. Marshalian price elasticities were found to be higher than Hicksian price elasticities in general as expected. Cross-price elasticities in most cases were found to be low. Changes in cereal prices affected other food consumption quantities.

Sugar beet is an important crop in terms of production value and represents 2.5% of the total value of crop production. Its production has been regulated and supported by the government. To adapt Turkey's sugar policies for potential admission to the EU, a sugar production quota policy was implemented in 1999 in addition to existing policies, mainly including price support and input subsidies. At the same time, the tariff imposed on imported sugar was reduced by 10% in order to comply with Uruguay Round Agreement (URA) provisions. The objective here is to analyze the impacts of these policy changes on Turkey's sugar sector using classic welfare analysis with the supply and demand parameters estimated in this study. The implementation of the production quota policy reduced domestic production by 107,000 tons but did not change domestic consumption. Thus, government spending and the producer surplus declined by 95 million and 9 million U.S. dollars, respectively, while the consumer surplus remained the same. A 10% decrease in tariffs because of URA provisions had no impact on the sugar sector since the border price, including the tariff, is still above the domestic price. To carry out this transition easily, Turkey must lower its production costs by structural enhancement in the sector.