Demand for American Soy Products in Turkey
Just as American peanut butter is always in great demand in Turkey, so are American soy products. Tofu, in particular, is in demand by young people who have an interest in vegetarianism and vegan life styles because it is one of the best sources of protein within vegetarian and vegan diets. Tofu is also in demand in Turkey because it is readily able to be incorporated into many types of traditional Turkish and Mediterranean dishes, largely because of it consistency which is very similar to soft cheeses. Tofu is very high in protein and low in dietary fat. American soy milk is also in demand in Turkey because it is a good nutritional equivalent of cow's milk and it can be used for many of the same types of purposes as cow's milk. Soy milk is higher in protein and much lower in dietary fat than cow's milk and can be flavored with chocolate for children an used in breakfast cereals.
The greatest demand in Turkey for American soy products is for soy grains and soy meals that are used in organic farming. These products are used by farmers to feed poultry and other livestock an organic diet that many people believe produces healthier livestock meat than traditional methods of feeding livestock cornmeal, oats, and (especially) animal byproducts, a practice that has been linked to the spread of serious cattle diseases in Europe such as so-called "Mad Cow Disease."
That demand for consumable soy farming products has also generated a corresponding demand for the equipment typically used to crush, extract, and dry soy products from the raw ingredients used to make them. This trend also extends to the vegetarian food industry because it allows large suppliers to produce tofu and soy milk from raw material and thereby avoid the costs associated with importing prepackaged processed soy products.
