Despite the region primarily being known for its tourism sector, farming remains one of the main staples of the local economy. "Agricultural income has been much higher on the western side of the Mediterranean resort of Antalya, which extends through the province's Kumluca, Finike, Demre and Kas districts," the newspaper said.
It quoted Kumluca Chamber of Trade and Commerce head Murat Hudavendigar Gunay as saying that the problems pertaining to Turkey's ties with neighboring countries had already damaged the agrarian sector in the past few years.
The situation, however, has deteriorated even further "since the jet crisis erupted between Turkey and Russia last November," according to Hurriyet Daily News.
"We unfortunately expect huge problems in the sector in the coming days and months. As farmers fail to find markets to sell their products, we will see collateral damage across all sector players," the newspaper cited Gunay as saying.
He urged the Turkish government to take steps so that "we could reach lively and luxurious markets in distant regions, which use air transportation quite effectively."
In January, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said that the country will lose $3.1 billion worth of trade in 2016 due to Russian economic sanctions.
Earlier, Ankara appealed to the World Trade Organization, arguing that the sanctions allegedly violate trade rules. Moscow responded by saying that its economic actions are fully within the framework of WTO rules.
