Bringing NEM-EMERGE closer to tomato growers in Türkiye
From 2 to 8 August 2026, the NEM-EMERGE team carried out a field data-gathering mission in northwestern Türkiye as part of the project’s second year of survey implementation and data collection.
The mission covered the regions of Silivri, Gelibolu and Çanakkale (Ezine-Pınarbaşı) and brought together tomato growers and key agricultural stakeholders, including cooperative members, agricultural engineers, representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture, municipal agricultural branches and village chiefs. More than 80 participants took part in the meetings, creating valuable opportunities to exchange knowledge, discuss local agricultural challenges and support the ongoing survey.
Data collection is continuing, with an additional 65 survey forms handed over to the Ministry of Agriculture to support further data gathering in the field.
As in 2025, the mission also highlighted the growing impact of NEM-EMERGE within local tomato-growing communities. Stakeholders are becoming increasingly familiar with the project, its activities and innovations, while awareness of the risks posed by root-knot nematodes (RKN) is also growing.
Beyond collecting valuable data, the mission strengthened links between researchers and local agricultural communities, helping ensure that the knowledge and experiences of growers and other stakeholders are reflected in the project’s work.
The mission successfully achieved its objectives of stakeholder engagement, data collection and survey refinement, contributing to the development of a high-quality dataset that will support the subsequent analysis and research activities of NEM-EMERGE.
