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September 03, 2017

The interview: Mrs Zübeyde Kavraz

Mrs Zübeyde Kavraz is the General Manager of Parantez International Exhibition Organization Corp.
Parantez Fair Organization is one of the Parantez Group companies who organised IDMA, the international feed and milling events.
The fair is held every two years and is widely considered to be one of the most important meeting platforms of the world milling sector. The eighth exhibition which wins recognition with visitors and investors in 2017, will be held in April 2019. But before this event, IDMA FEED - Feed Technologies and Sub-Industry Exhibition will be held from July 5-7, 2018 to support the developing feed industry.
Read our interview with Mrs Kavraz and discover how she plans to achieve Parantez’s primary goal, “To bring together the industry.”



What drives your passion within the flour, rice and feed industries?
As you know, Turkey is one of the leading countries in grain production. Grains, particularly wheat, such as bread, are a very valuable food product for us because grains are an invaluable source for the rest of humanity as well.
When we look around the world, we see that wheat in Europe and Central Asia, rice in Far East Asia, and corn in America has a vital significance. So, wherever you are going to go, the most valuable food source for humans is a grain product.
However, there was no organisation to unite the representatives of the industry, who processed grains and brought them to the fork, or to contribute to the development and growth of the industry, either in Turkey or around the world. We recognised the need in the industry and started organising the IDMA Exhibition with the support of the representatives of the industry.

Why have you decided to extend your feed focus by having its own show?
As you know, IDMA Exhibition also includes the feed industry. That is, for the 14 years we worked for the IDMA Exhibition, we also worked for the feed industry. As an outcome of these efforts, we came to a point where we can host the feed industry in a separate hall at IDMA 2017. If our past efforts had not satisfied the feed industry, we would not have managed that. In short, feed is not a new area for us; it is just a rapidly developing area, particularly in the last few years.  

In partnering with Perendale Publishers for your conferences, what advantages do you foresee with this partnership?
This developing area needs a special kind of support. We realised this and therefore focused on new organisations. Every organisation requires successful partners to ensure success. We believe Perendale is one of these partners. The experience of Parantez and Perendale companies in feed industry will bring added value to the sector and to us.

Why do you believe IDMA has been so successful for the last 14 years, and what made 2017’s show unique?
Turkey is one of the leaders in flour milling. In the past, it was one of the top three countries. With the IDMA Exhibition, it has been varying between first and second places.
We see and know that the energy of IDMA has brought to the industry a significant share in this success. That is because IDMA is the first and only international technology exhibition which brings flour, feed and rice milling industries and grain and pulse processing industries under one umbrella. However, this is not enough for success.
Our only mission and objective is to bring together the industry and to offer services in various areas. We have spent all of our energy in this industry for approximately 15 years and we have a significant knowledge and experience.
For the exhibition in 2017, we established special cooperation with the leading non-governmental organisations in almost 40 countries. We have agents in many countries, which have been working around the clock. Besides, we have a promotion team consisting of speaking seven languages, which focus all of their time on visitors and on communicating with them.
What made IDMA 2017 unique was its ability to host a remarkable number of investors, despite the adverse conditions in Turkey and around the world. Thus, the exhibition brought hope to the industry, which is going through a challenging period, and brought new opportunities for employment.

What do you have planned to increase visitor numbers in years to come and what sets you apart from your competitors? 
Turkey has an important geographical location and it is influenced by the conditions of its neighbours. Turkey was adversely affected by the problems we saw around the world in 2017.
However, the visitors of IDMA did not give up on our organisation, and flocked to Istanbul from all around the world.  That is because IDMA has proven its success as a brand, and I can proudly say that we managed to be included in the calendar of millers around the world.
Unlike our competitors, we specialise only in this area, and therefore we know the industry very well. We know who to contact and what to do to increase the number of visitors. Our objective is to increase the size of our data on all of the industries we target in the countries where we run promotional activities, and to improve our cooperation with non-governmental organizations in the industry, and to increase the number of publications, agencies and events that help us to promote our organisations.
Most importantly, to increase one-to-one individual communication, distinguishing us from our competitors.

In light of plans to hold an aquafeed conference with Perendale Publishers in 2018, can you expand upon what you think the future holds for aquaculture in Turkey?
Turkey is a country of agriculture and livestock breeding. It has a remarkable potential in all types of livestock breeding, small cattle and stockbreeding, poultry, fishery and pet industries.
There is a significant demand for feed for all species, however, the Turkish feed industry has not yet achieved the desired level. We believe that this will change in the next five years, and the Turkish feed industry will be stronger in the domestic and foreign markets.
We believe that the IDMA FEED 2018 Exhibition, and the conferences we will organise in cooperation with Perendale during the exhibition, will be effective and make significant contributions to the growth of the Turkish feed industry.  

Regarding the conferences to be held with Perendale and the funds leftover going towards Milling4Life and Aquaculture Without Frontiers UK, what vision do you have for IDMA growing these charities in Turkey?
Humanity and the industry really need non-governmental organisations, which have achieved their objectives. Of course, supporting such charities will be beneficial for the industry. Personally, I believe this is both an obligation and a responsibility. 

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