Sivas consumers shift to ready-dried vegetables for winter prep

In Sivas, Turkey, consumer habits for winter food preparation are shifting as residents increasingly opt for ready-to-use dried vegetables rather than traditional home-drying methods.

Historically, households would purchase fresh peppers and eggplants to clean, string, and sun-dry themselves. However, due to the time-consuming nature of the process and dependence on weather conditions, there is a growing demand for pre-dried products.

Vendor Mehmet Şarkışla noted that demand is significantly higher this year. He reported that peppers are sourced from Kahramanmaraş and eggplants from the Kemer region of Antalya. Beyond convenience, ready-dried products are also proving more economical; for example, dried pepper varieties range between 200 and 250 lira, whereas purchasing the equivalent amount of fresh peppers can cost between 400 and 450 lira.