By Emre Peker<\/p>\n
ISTANBUL\u2013Turkey\u2019s most popular food is in trouble.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan turned his attention for a brief moment to bread: the backbone of every meal in Turkey, where bakers put out 37 billion loaves a year.<\/p>\n
The premier said wasting bread is tantamount to greed, which lies at the root of economic crises and wars. Turkey, he said, can\u2019t afford to squander 2 billion loaves of bread annually while the country needs to encourage savings and millions worldwide suffer from hunger.<\/p>\n
That catapulted the puffy white loaves of dough, which are not nutritious but filling and rich in flavor, into the center of political debate. It also brought Mr. Erdogan, who is ever-present in the lives of Turkey\u2019s 75 million people but not known for culinary curiosity, into the kitchen.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom now on, we must enter a new period in the business of bread. Let\u2019s remove the so-called white bread from our tables, let\u2019s produce pure, genuine wheat bread, and in addition, let\u2019s bring to the table bread with a high ratio of bran in it,\u201d Mr. Erdogan said in Ankara.<\/p>\n
The prime minister\u2019s comments came after a flurry of media reports that private-equity firms including Dubai-based Abraaj Capital and Colony Capital from the U.S. are seeking a 50% stake in Simit Sarayi, Turkey\u2019s top baker of yet another dietary staple: the simit, a local bagel donned with sesame seeds. While the company\u2019s chairman said Simit Sarayi wouldn\u2019t consider offers below $500 million, the valuation seems half-baked at best, people familiar with the talks said.<\/p>\n
To be sure, Mr. Erdogan\u2019s comments let simit off the hook as he sought to fine-tune Turkey\u2019s habits and preferences. And this isn\u2019t the prime minister\u2019s first foray into health matters.<\/p>\n
An avid opponent of cigarettes, Mr. Erdogan has pushed a smoking ban in Turkey in 2008. The prime minister often solicits smokers to quit, collecting their cigarette packs with a date and signature to mark a pledge to stop smoking.<\/p>\n
In a more controversial health-care move, the government pushed through limitations to Caesarian section births after Mr. Erdogan said in May that he is opposed to the procedure. The premier is also against abortions, which he says is a ploy to stunt Turkey\u2019s economic growth, but the government hasn\u2019t yet pushed legislation on that issue.<\/p>\n
Indeed, the health-conscious prime minister\u2019s argument wasn\u2019t strictly related to the public diet. Mr. Erdogan also said Turkey can pay minimum wage salaries to more than 100,000 people or build 500 schools with the money it squanders on wasted bread.<\/p>\n
Thus, the premier joined other officials to encourage a higher savings ratio and build domestic resources for financing Turkey\u2019s economic growth. Currently, the country relies heavily on international funding as it seeks to expand the $800 billion economy by 5% annually to join the world\u2019s top-10 economies in the next decade.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to be a nation that gets richer as it saves, and saves as it gets richer,\u201d Mr. Erdogan said. \u201cFrom time to time, we see those who wipe their lips with leftover bread, we cannot be like them.\u201d<\/p>\n
via Turkey\u2019s Premier Spells Out Trouble for Most Popular Food: Bread – Emerging Europe Real Time – WSJ.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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