Turkey’s kebab business, worth 2.3 billion euros, is in danger in Germany

Beef and chicken meat They glisten as they slowly rotate on vertical rotisseries before being sliced ​​into razor-thin strips. Two chefs slide from a sizzling griddle to a hot toaster in a rehearsed dance. Piles of fresh tomatoes, cabbage and red onions glisten in a colorful tableau.

The scene at ‘Kebap With Attitude’ in Berlin’s trendy Mitte neighborhood is typical of any street stall or restaurant where chefs pile ingredients into pita bread to create the city’s beloved döner kebab.

But the status of this appetizer could be in jeopardy if the European Commissionapproves a proposal by Türkiye to regulate what can legally be called döner kebab.

At stake is an industry that generates annual sales of approximately 2.3 billion euros (almost 2.6 billion dollars). only in Germanyand 3.5 billion euros (almost 3.9 billion dollars) across Europe, according to the Berlin-based Association of Turkish Döner Producers in Europe.

“From the government to the streets, everyone is eating doner kebab,” said Deniz Buchholz, the owner of Kebap With Attitude, as waiters carried steaming orders from the kitchen to hungry lunchtime customers on a rainy Monday afternoon.

The word “döner” is derived from the Turkish verb “dönmek,” which means “to turn over.” The meat is roasted for hours on a spit and cut when the meat is crispy and golden. In Turkey, The dish was originally made of lamb and was sold alone on a plate. But in the 1970s, Turkish immigrants in Berlin decided to serve it in a pita and modify the recipe to make it special for Berliners.

Türkiye is fighting for a protected status for its ‘traditional speciality’

In April, Türkiye requested that the döner kebab be protected under a status called “traditional specialty guaranteed.” Türkiye’s beef is subject to the much vaunted “protected designation of origin” which applies to products specific to a geographical region, such as champagne from the eponymous region in France, but could affect kebab shop owners, their individual recipes and their customers throughout Germany.

According to Türkiye’s proposal, beef would have to come from cattle at least 16 months old. It would be marinated in specific amounts of animal fat, yogurt or milk, onion, salt and thyme, as well as black, red and white pepper. The final product would be cut into pieces between 3 and 5 millimeters thick. Chicken would be regulated in a similar way.

The European Commission must decide by 24 September whether the 11 objections to the application, including those from the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, are well founded. If so, Germany and Turkey will have up to six months to reach an agreement. The European Commission has the final say.

“We have taken note of Türkiye’s request with some surprise,” the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Feeding and Agriculture of Germany in a statement to The Associated Press.

“The kebab is part of Germany, and the diversity of its preparation methods reflects the diversity of our country – this must be preserved. In the interest of the many fans in Germany, we are committed to ensuring that the döner kebab can remain as it is prepared and eaten here,” the ministry said.

It seems that vegetables, turkey and some beef kebabsall of them popular in Germany, already would not be allowed under Turkey’s requestbecause it does not mention them specifically, which causes confusion in the German food industry.

“The kebab belongs to Germany. Everyone should be able to decide for themselves how it is prepared and eaten here. “There is no need for guidelines from Ankara,” he wrote in the social platform X Cem ÖzdemirGermany’s Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture, who also has Turkish roots.

Buchholz, from Kebap With Attitude, said he was not worried about possible regulations.

Although he said it could be a way to keep the quality of traditional döner kebab high (which he believes has fallen out of fashion in some places), he added that shop owners may have to draw on Berlin’s legacy of creative solutions to sustain their expanded menus.

“We will follow the Berlin path and find a solution to call it something else,” he said, such as calling it a “vegetarian sandwich.”

The doner kebab also has an impact on the political sphere

Anger over kebab costs that have risen into double digits prompted Die Linke, the left-wing party, to call on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for a “price cut” that would have subsidised street food and set a price cap for customers.

Scholz refused, but took to social media to explain that the rising food prices This is partly due to rising energy costs, which are fueled by Russia’s war against Ukraine.

And the German president, Frank-Walter Steinmeierengaged in “döner diplomacy” when he brought a third-generation kebab shop owner and a skewer of meat to Turkey in April. The trip was the first official visit by a German president to that country in a decade.

The reputation of Türkiye’s populist president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has made some Turkish citizens who own kebab shops in Germany afraid to speak out.

Turkish consumers oppose the proposed rules for fear of retaliation when they return home.

In its objection, the German Hotel and Restaurant Association wrote that Türkiye’s proposals differ from typical German döner preparations, and that Regulations could lead to economic problems for kebab shopsas well as potential legal challenges.

The German doner kebab industry should not be subject to Turkish regulations, the association said in a statement. “The diversity of kebabs must be preserved”the association said.