Cypfruvex opens a 15,000-tonne cold storage complex in Güzelyurt

TRNC Prime Minister Ünal Üstel opened an integrated Cypfruvex cold storage complex in Güzelyurt: the facility covers 7,661 m² and is designed to store 15,000 tonnes of produce at a time.

The complex includes six deep-freeze chambers with a capacity of 5,000 tonnes and twelve cold storage chambers with a capacity of 10,000 tonnes. It also has two shock-freezing chambers and a solar power system designed to reduce electricity costs.

According to Üstel, producers will no longer have to sell their harvest immediately after picking: losses will be reduced, quality will be preserved for longer, and producers will be able to choose when to bring their produce to market. Cypfruvex’s processing, storage and export capacity will also increase.

The facility was built with funding from Turkey, coordinated by the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB). Üstel described citrus farming as not merely an industry, but a source of income for thousands of families in the region.

In 2024, producers were provided with 231 million TL to ensure that the harvest did not remain on the trees. Several days ago, citrus growers received 607,148,950 TL, with the remaining payments promised in October. Over the past five years, the agricultural support budget in the TRNC has increased by 321%, while Cypfruvex’s production capacity has grown by 85%.

Üstel also listed other projects in the region: water from Turkey has been brought to the Güzelyurt plain, the new Güzelyurt State Hospital has been completed and will open soon, the Lefke–Güzelyurt road has been completed, and social housing projects have resumed.