Turkey’s Presidential Communications Directorate said Thursday that reports claiming the government will set up aisles in supermarkets to curb food inflation are false, calling the claim a newspaper suggestion rather than government policy.
The directorate said social media posts and political statements that treated the idea as an official project misled the public and did not reflect any decision by state institutions. It urged the public to rely on official announcements for accurate information.
Earlier in the day, the pro-government Yeni Şafak daily had reported that some 10 to 15 percent of shelf space in more than 55,000 chain supermarkets would be reserved for goods supplied by the state at fixed nationwide prices, with distribution from government warehouses and a limited operating margin for participating markets. Several outlets repeated those details.
The reports and the denial come as Turkey continues to struggle with double-digit food inflation, which has outpaced general consumer price increases and eroded household purchasing power. The country’s official annual inflation rate slowed to 33.5 percent in July, having peaked at 75 percent in May of last year.
While government-linked media outlets have reported on the plan as a measure to shield low-income households, independent economists have questioned its feasibility, citing potential strains on public finances, supply bottlenecks and the risk of distorting private retail markets.
Some analysts said the reported plan could be a prelude to a government push for snap elections or a referendum on a new constitution, aimed at shoring up voter support.
The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has previously intervened in food markets, including through municipal vegetable stalls and discounted sales during past inflation spikes. Critics argue those programs offered only temporary relief without addressing underlying structural problems in agriculture and distribution.