Turkish miller gets financial boost to keep up with coronavirus-driven flour demand

15-Jan-2021 - Last updated on 15-Jan-2021 at 11:05 GMT

The at-home baking craze continues as countries around the world go back into lockdown. Pic: GettyImages/Lordn

Ulusoy Un Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S. – one of Turkey’s largest flour millers and grain traders – has received a cash injection from an EBRD and TSKB co-financing programme, created in 2016 to improve and simplify access to finance for small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Turkey.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Turkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi, the Industrial Development Bank of Turkey (TSKB), are jointly providing a TRY 40 million (€4.4m) loan to fund the company’s growing need for working capital.

Part of the Ulusoy Food Group – a major food supplier in the region – Ulusoy Un was established in 1989 with a daily wheat processing capacity of 180 tonnes, growing to over 2,100 metric tonnes today. The majority of its flour is sold on the domestic market for the production of bread, biscuits, chapattis and noodles, but is also exported to over 80 countries on five continents.

Ulusoy Un runs two production facilities: in Samsun, situated on the Black Sea coast, and Çorlu in the northwest. Their combined wheat processing capacity is 900 tonnes per day.

Ulusoy Un consistently maintains its ranking in the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce’s Top 500 Industrial Enterprises in Turkey.

Like elsewhere in the world, flour remains in high demand as consumers explore their inner baker to break the boredom of lockdown. Ulusoy Un plans to use the funds to expand it capacity with the addition of another storage facility.

The EBRD is a major investor in the Turkish economy, pumping in over €11.7 billion since 2009. It has also been a particular saviour to ensure the country continues to survive the crippling COVID 19 crisis.