Turkey unloads first sunflower ship from Argentina

The first ship carrying 33,000 tonnes of Argentine sunflower seeds was unloaded in Turkey in May. The SUNSEEDMAN was one of three to arrive in the country, but the other two were rejected due to mold and pesticide levels. Another ship is due to arrive by May 28.

 

Turkey is one of the world's largest importers of sunflower seeds. According to ITC, from September to April 2025/26, it imported 1.3 million tons of sunflower seeds, 48% of which were supplied from Romania, 28% from Moldova and 15% from Bulgaria.

 

In December last year, information appeared about Turkey's purchase of sunflower seeds from Argentina.

 

Recall that sunflower seeds shipped from Argentina to Bulgaria were also found to contain excessive levels of pesticides, which poses risks for the sale of sunflower oil.

 

Against this background, prices for sunflower oil FOB Turkey decreased to $1,380-1,400/t.