Adana is one of the first industrialised regions of the Republic of Türkiye. The richness of products and proximity to raw materials in Cukurova, one of the most fertile plains of the world, brought industrialisation along with it. After the second half of the 19th century, cotton production started to develop rapidly in the fertile lands of Adana. As a result, ginning and textile factories, which can be counted among the firsts of Türkiye, were opened. The first international fair in the history of the Republic, the ‘Agricultural Fair’, was held in Adana in 1924 and the first private banks were established in Adana.

Adana has 539 thousand hectares of agricultural land. It has an agricultural production value of 7.7 billion TL and is a pioneer in citrus, corn, watermelon, soya, peanut, sunflower, cotton and honey production in Türkiye. In addition, aquaculture products have shown a significant development in the last 10 years. The food and beverage manufacturing sector accounts for 16% of total manufacturing industry employment. In recent years, the contribution of the agriculture and food sector to the total exports of the city is 27%. There are approximately 2,538 restaurants and 1,000 street flavour vendors in Adana. In this context, agriculture, food and food and beverage sectors constitute the building blocks of Adana’s economy. The leadership of these sectors provides important contributions to the city for innovative developments in the field of gastronomy.