Olive growing in Gaziantep

Gaziantep is known for its pistachios, but it is a substantial olive province too, with more than 10 million olive trees.

The province's olive centre is Nizip. What sets the Nizip olive apart is its oil content — the combination of ripening period, climate and soil means Turkey's oiliest olives grow here. Nizip Olive Oil carries a geographical indication.

The most widespread variety is Nizip Yağlık; beyond the district, trees of this variety are also found in central Kahramanmaraş and in Cizre, Mardin.

The province also holds locally specific varieties such as Kilis Yağlık, Eğriburun, Kalem Bezi, Yağ Çelebi and Kan Çelebi — the south-east is Turkey's richest region for varietal diversity.

Around 35 olive oil processing lines operate in Nizip, with roughly 20 more in neighbouring Kilis. The region has the infrastructure to turn its own crop into oil without sending it elsewhere.

That matters when read alongside the region's overall picture: the south-east accounts for 8% of Turkey's olive area and 6% of its output — a small share. But its processing capacity and varietal diversity make it more important than its scale suggests.