Turkey's hazelnut exports hit nearly 262,000 tons from last September to this July, a regional trade union announced on Friday.
The Black Sea Hazelnut and Products Exporters' Union reported that Turkey earned $1.54 billion from hazelnut exports during the first 11 months of the season.
With nearly 75.3% of total exports, the EU was the top market for Turkey's hazelnut exports.
The union figures said 42.7% of the country's hazelnut exports were processed products worth some $655 million, while the rest were raw hazelnuts.
Turkey -- the world's largest hazelnut exporter -- earned $1.78 billion with nearly 287,000 tons of hazelnut exports last season, from September 2017 to the end of August 2018.