Development of silkworm (Bomyx mori) breeding in some cities in Turkey

Silkworm breeding is a branch of production that can be carried out as an auxiliary agricultural activity, which has experienced fluctuations in production in recent years and in the evaluation of family members' labor, preventing hidden unemployment in rural areas. The silkworm is the caterpillar of a species of butterfly from the Bombycidae family (Bombyx mori) that feeds on mulberry leaves. It produces silk, an important and expensive textile industry raw material that has been used since 2600 years. Mulberry silk is produced from cocoons knitted by the mulberry silkworm (Bombyx mori) and constitutes 95%of the world silk production. According to the 2019 silkworm report of the Ministry of Customs and Trade, silkworm cultivation is carried out in approximately 30 countries around the world. China takes the first place in world fresh cocoon production with an annual average production of 600-700 thousand tons, followed by India with a production of around 130 thousand tons. According to these production values, it is seen that China and India realize a large part of the world silkworm production. Approximately 60-70 tons of 100-120 tons of fresh cocoons, produced in our country for the last two years, are purchased by Kozabirlik and 40-50 tons by Kulp Agriculture Center, Kulp Silk Production Center Economic Enterprise, which operates in the Diyarbakır region. Approximately 45-50 tons of dry cocoons are obtained as a result of drying the total cocoons purchased by the Kozabirlik and Kulp Agriculture Center Kulp Sılk Production Center. When the status of sericulture and wet cocoon production amounts are examined in our country between 2002 and 2019, it is seen that wet cocoon production has become widespread over the years. The number of cities engaged in silkworm breeding, which was 21 in 2002, reached 52 in 2019, The number of villages, which was 327, increased to 660 in 2019. In this study, it is aimed to examine silkworm production, which has been cultivated in our country for many years, on an annual basis.