Turkey collects 750,000+ tons of milk in February

By Muhammed Ali Gurtas

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's integrated dairies collected some 751,017 tons of cow milk in February, the country's statistical authority reported Friday.

TurkStat said in a statement that drinking milk production amounted to some 128,986 tons in the same month, marking 16.5% annual decline.

Turkey produced 55,500 tons of cheese, 98.6% of which was made from cow milk as the rest was produced from sheep, goat, buffalo and mixed milk.

Yoghurt production fell 1.2% year-on-year to some 89,116 tons in February, as the production of ayran -- a traditional salty drink made of yoghurt and water -- totaled some 53,527 tons.

TurkStat also added that the average fat rate of cow's milk collected by integrated dairies was 3.5%, while the average rate of protein was 3.2% in February.

Last year, over 10 million tons of cow milk were collected in Turkey while nearly 1.7 million tons of drinking milk production was recorded.

The country's official statistical authority will release next figures about milk and dairy products on May 13.