A third of fishing in Turkey is commercial fishing from wild fisheries but most is aquaculture.[2] In 2018, the seafood sector provided employment for 53 thousand people and produced 0.6 million tons of fish.[3] According to the OECD, this produced a value of almost US$1.5 billion.[3]
Turkey is surrounded by seas on three sides and has a coastline of 8,333 km (5,178 mi), and its natural lakes make up approximately 10,000 km2 (3,900 sq mi), with 3,442 km2 (1,329 sq mi) of reservoirs, and 178,000 km (111,000 mi) of rivers. Per capita fish consumption is low in Turkey despite being surrounded by seas.