TİKA Offers Bulk Tank Support to Colombian Farmers

Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) provided a bulk tank to the farmers’ association in the Colombian town of El Penon.

As part of the “Project on the Development of Milk Production” that was carried out in collaboration with the Municipality of El Penon, the farmers’ association founded by farmers in the region was supplied with a bulk tank. Thanks to the bulk tank provided by TİKA, the regional economy will be boosted significantly. The people in the region will be able to produce commercially valuable products such as curd, cheese, and yogurt, and they will be able to develop new commercial initiatives. 

Speaking during the handover ceremony El Penon Mayor Francisco Cruz Ruiz said, “Thank you a thousand times, we send our greetings and our thanks to the people of Turkey for trusting El Penon and for supporting us. Thank you for supporting the economic initiatives of our farmers and for being our strategic partner in elevating the entrepreneurship in the region.” Ruiz remarked that the farmers, who produce around 30 liters of milk a day on average, will be able to collect the milk in the tank and come up with products that have higher commercial value. Ruiz expressed that the producers will have direct access to the market thanks to TİKA’s support, and the people in the region, who are trained on production in collaboration with the National Training Service (SENA), which is Colombian’s vocational training institution, will be using the tank provided by TİKA in the most efficient way possible.

We are hopeful about the future

El Penon Farmers’ Association President Demetrio Barrera Gonzales added, “We always consider our future. The future of our children and families. Our biggest problem is our dependence on the middlemen who purchase our milk. We wanted to get organized as small producers and get what we deserve for our efforts and our daily production.” Gonzales remarked that thanks to the bulk tank, they are hopeful about the future and the production in the region will increase. "Our Farmers’ Association is grateful to TİKA. Thanks to your contributions, we will be leaving our children, who are our future, a significant investment opportunity. I hope our cooperation with TİKA continues to develop.”