The 5th Lavender Harvest event organized by Fethiye Municipality in Yeşilüzümlü Neighborhood hosted colorful scenes. While protocol members and a large number of citizens attended the event held with music performances, the goal of increasing the production of medicinal aromatic plants and transforming them into value-added products was once again emphasized.
The Lavender Harvest event, organized for the fifth time this year by the Fethiye Municipality in Yeşilüzümlü Neighborhood, featured music performances and a harvest program, creating enthusiastic moments. At the event held in the purple lavender fields, citizens both participated in the harvest and enjoyed a pleasant day in harmony with nature.
The event was attended by Fethiye Deputy Mayors Veli Uysal and Oğuz Bolelli, FTSO Assembly President Kemal Hıra, Fethiye Municipal Council Member Metin Sevinç, Founding President of Fethiye Likya Women's Cooperative Çiğdem Karaca, along with many citizens. During the event, which continued with musical performances, citizens harvested in the lavender fields and took plenty of photographs.
“Our goal is to expand production”
Fethiye Deputy Mayor Oğuz Bolelli said that the lavender harvest is not just a festival, but an important project that encourages the production of medicinal and aromatic plants in the region. Bolelli said, "This year, we are organizing the fifth one. It was an event we started to promote the spread and commercial efficiency of medicinal and aromatic plants around Yeşilüzümlü and İncirköy. We started with a lavender garden, then expanded with the cultivation of lemon balm. Thanks to this exemplary work each year, interest in lavender in the region has also increased." Bolelli stated that the lavender oil obtained from the harvest each year is extracted and delivered to the citizens, saying, "While promoting this product, we also aim for it to serve as a good example economically for our district. Hopefully, we will continue our path with an increasing harvest every year."
Fethiye Likya Women's Cooperative President Çiğdem Karaca expressed their happiness for the event reaching its fifth year and said that the organization is one of the best examples of unity and solidarity. Karaca stated, "We need days like these. We need to be together, to integrate with nature. In the early years, we were a very small community. Today, however, we see increasing participation every year. This shows that we are doing the right things."
Explaining that as a cooperative they transform products obtained from lavender and altınot into high value-added products, Karaca said, "We turn the products obtained here into lavender and altınot creams, aromatic oils, and soaps. Our municipality gifts these products to its guests. Thus, we both make use of our land and share what we produce with our people."
Karaca, stating that visitors come to Yeşilüzümlü from different provinces of Turkey, said, "How happy we are to have such a garden. Every year, we will continue to increase our production, utilize our lands, and share with our people."
From lavender to production, from production to added value in Fethiye
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