A cooperation protocol was signed between MÜSİAD and TAGEM in order to expand the cultivation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants and to advance R&D activities
MÜSİAD, Türkiye’s most widespread and largest capital platform on a global scale, has accelerated its cooperation activities in order to reduce the effects of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic in Türkiye and to overcome the economic crisis it has caused.
Joining forces with Türkiye’s leading institutions and organizations against the current economic slowdown, MÜSİAD in this context first signed a cooperation protocol with the General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies (TAGEM) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
The signing ceremony, held by teleconference, was attended by MÜSİAD President Abdurrahman KAAN, Chairman of the MÜSİAD Health Products and Services Export Committee Levent CAN, TAGEM General Director Özkan KAYACAN and Deputy General Directors Assoc. Prof. İlhan AYDIN and İhsan ASLAN.
Under the protocol, the aim is to contribute to expanding the cultivation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAP) in Türkiye, to advance the R&D work to be carried out on MAP, to increase the use of domestic and national seeds in MAP, to carry out domestic seed breeding and to cooperate in the field of MAP cultivation.
Underlining that the subject of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants is highly important both for our country’s agriculture and for TAGEM, General Director Özkan Kayacan said that the purpose of the protocol signed is to increase the cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants in Türkiye and to expand the improved domestic and national varieties. Stating that these products must be of the desired quantity and quality in order to make sufficient use of the production and market potential in medicinal and aromatic plants, Kayacan said, “Work has begun on developing and registering varieties of medicinal and aromatic plants that carry the qualities required both for direct use and by industry.”
We Are Continuing Our Work in 12 Areas
Sharing his assessments on the cooperation carried out, President Abdurrahman Kaan said, “ We have taken action step by step in order to expand Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Türkiye. In this vein, we first established a Venture Capital Fund in the previous period. Under the fund we aim to carry out support activities in 12 areas. One of the 12 areas we are considering supporting is the work to be carried out on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. Our Health Products and Services Export Committee is continuing its work in order to produce the raw material of traditional herbal medicinal products from Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. In this context, under the leadership of our Committee Chairman Levent Can and our Committee Members Salih Beşir and Selman Alimoğlu, our relevant members within MÜSİAD have entered into cooperation with many universities in Türkiye.”
We Will Create Added Value for Our Country
Continuing his remarks, Kaan said, ‘’With this cooperation we have focused on 115 kinds of medicinal plants that are also on the list of the Ministry of Health. We are also working on the seed breeding of these plants, the sowing of these seeds and the raw material facilities that will process them. The most important output we will obtain from this is that we want to produce, in GMP-compliant environments, the raw materials used in food supplements that are currently almost entirely imported, the raw materials used in medicine production from Traditional Herbal Medicinal Plants (GBTB), aromatic raw materials and the raw materials that the food industry will use. In this way we will have prevented these plants from being sent abroad cheaply as plants after being grown in our country. Moreover, on behalf of our country we will have transformed these products into high value-added raw materials. Thus our raw material imports will decrease and our exports will increase. As a result of this work, as MÜSİAD we had our members establish, as a first step, our company named BIOCELL İlaç ve Kimya Sanayi Ticaret Limited Şirketi. As MÜSİAD we aim to advance within the Academia-Public-Industry triangle. In this context, in the past months we established the Academia-Public-Industry Cooperation and Project Monitoring Committee. In the coming periods we will continue our work without slowing down through our relevant committees and boards. ’’
Finally, the parties, stating that they attach great importance to the cooperation protocol signed, expressed the wish that the pandemic be overcome in a short time.
MÜSİAD, Türkiye’s most widespread and largest capital platform on a global scale, has accelerated its cooperation activities in order to reduce the effects of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic in Türkiye and to overcome the economic crisis it has caused.
Joining forces with Türkiye’s leading institutions and organizations against the current economic slowdown, MÜSİAD in this context first signed a cooperation protocol with the General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies (TAGEM) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
The signing ceremony, held by teleconference, was attended by MÜSİAD President Abdurrahman KAAN, Chairman of the MÜSİAD Health Products and Services Export Committee Levent CAN, TAGEM General Director Özkan KAYACAN and Deputy General Directors Assoc. Prof. İlhan AYDIN and İhsan ASLAN.
Under the protocol, the aim is to contribute to expanding the cultivation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAP) in Türkiye, to advance the R&D work to be carried out on MAP, to increase the use of domestic and national seeds in MAP, to carry out domestic seed breeding and to cooperate in the field of MAP cultivation.
Underlining that the subject of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants is highly important both for our country’s agriculture and for TAGEM, General Director Özkan Kayacan said that the purpose of the protocol signed is to increase the cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants in Türkiye and to expand the improved domestic and national varieties. Stating that these products must be of the desired quantity and quality in order to make sufficient use of the production and market potential in medicinal and aromatic plants, Kayacan said, “Work has begun on developing and registering varieties of medicinal and aromatic plants that carry the qualities required both for direct use and by industry.”
We Are Continuing Our Work in 12 Areas
Sharing his assessments on the cooperation carried out, President Abdurrahman Kaan said, “ We have taken action step by step in order to expand Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Türkiye. In this vein, we first established a Venture Capital Fund in the previous period. Under the fund we aim to carry out support activities in 12 areas. One of the 12 areas we are considering supporting is the work to be carried out on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. Our Health Products and Services Export Committee is continuing its work in order to produce the raw material of traditional herbal medicinal products from Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. In this context, under the leadership of our Committee Chairman Levent Can and our Committee Members Salih Beşir and Selman Alimoğlu, our relevant members within MÜSİAD have entered into cooperation with many universities in Türkiye.”
We Will Create Added Value for Our Country
Continuing his remarks, Kaan said, ‘’With this cooperation we have focused on 115 kinds of medicinal plants that are also on the list of the Ministry of Health. We are also working on the seed breeding of these plants, the sowing of these seeds and the raw material facilities that will process them. The most important output we will obtain from this is that we want to produce, in GMP-compliant environments, the raw materials used in food supplements that are currently almost entirely imported, the raw materials used in medicine production from Traditional Herbal Medicinal Plants (GBTB), aromatic raw materials and the raw materials that the food industry will use. In this way we will have prevented these plants from being sent abroad cheaply as plants after being grown in our country. Moreover, on behalf of our country we will have transformed these products into high value-added raw materials. Thus our raw material imports will decrease and our exports will increase. As a result of this work, as MÜSİAD we had our members establish, as a first step, our company named BIOCELL İlaç ve Kimya Sanayi Ticaret Limited Şirketi. As MÜSİAD we aim to advance within the Academia-Public-Industry triangle. In this context, in the past months we established the Academia-Public-Industry Cooperation and Project Monitoring Committee. In the coming periods we will continue our work without slowing down through our relevant committees and boards. ’’
Finally, the parties, stating that they attach great importance to the cooperation protocol signed, expressed the wish that the pandemic be overcome in a short time.