Value chain analysis of milk in Ardahan

KARAKOYUN, Funda. Value Chain Analysis of Milk in Ardahan, Master's Thesis, Ardahan, 2025. This thesis aims to analyze the milk value chain in the province of Ardahan, which holds an important place in Turkey's cattle breeding sector. Despite Ardahan's extensive pasturelands and substantial livestock population, the presence of structural challenges in the dairy sector constitutes the main motivation of the study. Considering its geographical characteristics and traditional livestock production structure, milk and dairy products occupy a crucial place in the province's economy. However, disruptions occurring at various stages of the value chain prevent the sector from reaching its full potential. The study employed a mixed approach utilizing both primary and secondary data collection methods, and conducted face-to-face surveys with milk producers and eight cheese- processing enterprises within the province. The analyses were disaggregated in accordance with the stages of the value chain, with the objective of identifying the cost revenues associated with both producers and processing facilities. The findings indicate that the highest cost item for producers is feed expenditures, and that low productivity further increases production costs. At the processing stage, the profitability of enterprises largely depends on the conditions of raw milk procurement. Additionally, limited market access, insufficient product diversification, and a lack of branding emerge as significant challenges for enterprises. Within the scope of the thesis, the milk value chain was divided into the basic stages of production, collection and transportation, processing, marketing, and consumption. For each stage, the relevant actors, cost structures, value added, bottlenecks, and potential opportunities were examined in detail. The analyses reveal that the key challenges in Ardahan's milk value chain include low productivity, limited modernization, insufficient producer organization, restricted product diversity, and weaknesses in marketing strategies. In conclusion, the realization of the full potential of the province's dairy sector depends on improving production efficiency, reinforcing marketing capabilities through the establishment of robust cooperatives, and promoting product diversification by developing and introducing high value-added dairy products to the market. Keywords: Dairy Sector in Ardahan, Milk Value Chain Analysis, Kashar Cheese, Rural Development, Economic Analysis.