YENİ Party lawmaker asks: What happened to the 750 grams of minced meat we bought for 200 lira?

Umut Akdoğan put a slab of minced meat on a scale to make his political point about Turkey’s cost-of-living crisis. The YENİ Party Ankara lawmaker said 200 lira bought 750 grams of minced meat in 2023, when the AK Party most recently came to power, but buys only 200 grams today.

“Three years have passed. What happened to the 750 grams of minced meat we bought for 200 lira?” Akdoğan asked. He said 555 grams had disappeared from the amount consumers could afford, leaving only “a ball of minced meat” for the same banknote.

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Three years have passed. What happened to the 750 grams of minced meat we bought for 200 lira?

Akdoğan accused the government of leaving citizens struggling to make ends meet and predicted that voters would defeat YENİ Party’s political opponents at the next election. “You will be defeated by YENİ Party at the ballot box with the support of the people,” he said, promising that the party’s portion of minced meat would grow again.

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You will be defeated by YENİ Party at the ballot box with the support of the people.

He presented the party’s proposed remedy as support for producers. A YENİ Party government, he said, would subsidize energy, fertilizer, diesel and animal feed so livestock producers could lower costs. That would allow butchers to sell more meat for 200 lira without disappointing customers, while helping producers, butchers and consumers alike.

Akdoğan also said the party would reduce dependence on imported meat and support pasture areas rather than converting them into housing land. He said cheaper production would eventually allow families to put meat on their tables, including meatballs for children, and promised to explain the plan to voters before seeking their support at the ballot box.

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We will free meat from its dependence on imports.