Abstract

Oregano (Origanum spp.), culinary herb, is getting more popular because of its health benefits and extensive usage area. Besides Mexico, Greece, Israel, Albania and Morocco, Turkey is also one of the main countries involved in production and export of oregano. Generally oregano is widely grown in Aegean Region of Turkey. This research was carried out to determine the effective factors based on production, structure of farms and information sources on commercial oregano production. For this reason, surveys were conducted on 35 producers in this region, which showed that small farm structure is functional for oregano production in the region. Additionally, it was revealed that decision and appropriation of producers to grow oregano mostly depend on some traditional information sources like fellow farmers, relatives and personal experiences. Multiple correspondence analysis was used to determine how producers access information sources which were under the influence of farm land, cooperative membership and oregano share in income.

Key words: Oregano, Turkey, farms, information sources, multiple correspondences.