'Boycott Turkey' gains momentum: How Indians are now turning cold on Turkish coffee, chocolates and fashion

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A quiet but growing wave of economic resistance is taking shape across India — this time targeting products made in Turkey. From small neighbourhood grocery stores to major online fashion retailers, Indian businesses are increasingly choosing to boycott Turkish goods in response to Ankara’s growing alignment with Pakistan, reports Reuters.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan expressed public solidarity with Pakistan, after Indian Armed Forces carried out military strikes on terror hubs and military sites in Pakistan, following the dastardly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.

On Monday, the All India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF), which supplies 13 million mom-and-pop grocery stores, said it was launching an "indefinite and total boycott" of all Turkish-origin goods, which would affect chocolates, wafers, jams, biscuits and skincare products.

Indian fashion websites owned by Walmart-backed Flipkart and billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance have removed numerous Turkish apparel brands, according to three sources and a review of their websites.

Flipkart's fashion website Myntra removed listings of Turkish brands including Trendyol, known for women's clothing, street and casual wear brand LC Waikiki and jeans producer Mavi, said one source with direct knowledge.

Myntra removed the brands "in the national interest" without Walmart's involvement, a second source with direct knowledge said.

Reliance's fashion website AJIO also removed Turkish brands including Trendyol, Koton, LC Waikiki from its app, and many of those listings were shown as out of stock on Monday. A source cited "national sentiments" as a reason.

Flipkart, Reliance Retail and the Turkish brands Trendyol, LC Waikiki, Koton and Mavi did not respond to requests for comment.

India has not ordered companies to boycott Turkey, and India's annual $2.7 billion in goods imports from Turkey are dominated by mineral fuels and precious metals.

But a consumer boycott could still be significant. AICPDF said its ban would affect around 20 billion rupees ($234 million) of food products. Apparel imports were worth $81 million last year, according to the Trading Economics reference website.

Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, one of India's biggest apple-growing states, said on Monday he would ask for a ban on apple imports from Turkey, which were worth around $60 million last year.

Moreover, last week Flipkart said it was suspending flight, hotel and holiday package bookings to Turkey "in solidarity with India’s national interest and sovereignty".

Indians have been cancelling holidays to Turkey and New Delhi has cancelled the security clearance of the Turkish-based aviation ground handling firm Celebi.

Reuters reported on Friday that Air India was lobbying Indian officials to disallow rival IndiGo's leasing tie-up with Turkish Airlines, citing business impact as well as security concerns sparked by Ankara's support for Pakistan.

In 2023, bilateral trade between India and Turkey stood at around $12 billion, with Turkey enjoying a trade surplus. Turkish exports to India include edible oil, construction materials, textiles, and machinery. Though consumer goods form a smaller portion of this basket, they hold symbolic weight in influencing public perception and trade relations.

(With inputs from Reuters)