The inaugural Tissue World Istanbul has today opened its doors to the tissue industry located in Turkey, eastern Europe, Russia, CIS, Middle East, Central Asia and Africa.
It is the latest edition to the Tissue World portfolio, taking place on 25-26 September at the WOW Convention Center in Istanbul.
It features a conference, exhibiting-sponsors and social functions spread over the two days event.
The conference was opened with a speech from Erdal Sükan, president of the Turkish Pulp and Paper Industry Foundation.
He highlighted the growing demand for tissue products in Turkey, which has reached 600,000 tonnes with a yearly average growth of 11% in the last five years.
With a population of 77 million, Turkey’s per capita consumption is still in the five kg level and Sükan emphasised the market would offer an attractive investment opportunity if it reaches an average consumption of 15kg.
He adds the Turkish tissue industry offers significant opportunities for both national and international manufacturers.
In the past eight years, tissue capacity in Turkey has more than doubled and the country is now the sixth largest towel and tissue producer in the European region.
Its strong market position is a result of a sustained period of growth beginning back in 2005.
As a country, Turkey is already ranked 17th in the world and by 2020 it will have emerged as one of the top 10 economies in the world.
Not only is the country economically viable but it is a strategically crucial one, enjoying one of the strongest geo-locations in Eurasia.
Conference topics look at the outlook for the tissue sector in the Turkey, Russia, CIS, Middle East, Africa, and how best the tissue industry should leverage their dynamics.
Tissue consumer and distribution trends as well as the latest technical developments will also be discussed.
Speakers include Waheed Al-Qannas, site operations manager at Nuqul Group/AL Sindian Paper Mill; Erkan Tirnavali, general manager at Aktül Kağıt Üretim Pazarlama; Esko Uutela, principal, tissue, RISI; Orhan Öğücü, chairman, Lila Kagit San ve Tic, and Fatoş Başbuğ, tissue category R&D manager, Hayat Kimya AS, and many more.
For those unable to attend Tissue World Istanbul, a summary of the conference talks will be in the November/December issue of Tissue World Magazine.
