Romania becomes Turkey's leading sunflower seed supplier

Romania has emerged as the primary supplier of sunflower seeds to Turkey, according to reports from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. Turkish importers have already contracted 400,000 tons of seeds for delivery between September and November for the 2026/27 season, representing over 22% of the projected annual import volume.

Turkey is expected to significantly increase its sunflower seed imports to 1.8 million tons in the 2026/27 season, up from an estimated 1.62 million tons in 2025/26. This increase is driven by a desire to boost domestic processing capacity to 3.2 million tons and a deficit in crude oil supplies caused by logistical disruptions and attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea region.

In the previous 11-month period, Romania was the leading supplier, providing 652,000 tons, which accounted for approximately 41% of Turkey's total imports. Other major suppliers included Moldova with 481,000 tons and Bulgaria with 268,000 tons.