This Saturday in Yakaköy, İzmir residents will gather around sweet traditions

Bornova Municipality is organizing Turkey’s very first Jam Festival on Saturday, September 13, at the Yakaköy Picnic Area. With a rich program ranging from local producers and traditional recipes to children’s activities and competitions, the festival will bring İzmir residents together around the sweet tables of nature and craftsmanship.

“We are carrying the jams of our mothers to the new generation,” said Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki, inviting all İzmir residents to the festival.

Pots are boiling in the villages

In preparation for the festival, an intense process took place in the rural neighborhoods. In cooperation with the İzmir Branch of the Chamber of Food Engineers and the Bornova District Directorate of Agriculture, producers received training on hygiene, low sugar use, and traditional jam-making techniques. During practical workshops, ginger jam was prepared in Yakaköy and tomato jam in Çamiçi Village.

At the festival, a wide variety of jams—from pinecone to linden—will be cooked in large pots, and trainees will share what they have learned with the people of İzmir.

Festival program

• 50 local producer stands

• Jam-making workshops

• Blind tasting events

• Children’s workshops, traditional games, trampoline and inflatable playgrounds

• “Best Jam” competition

• Concerts by Ali Çakar and Fulya Atıl

• Marching band performance

The festival will open at 11:00 AM. Free shuttle buses will depart at 10:00 AM from Bornova Metro İzbaş Car Park, Altındağ Jewish Cemetery, and Yeşilova Son Durak.

Mayor Eşki: “We are rekindling the jam pots”

Mayor Ömer Eşki explained the aim of the festival as follows:
“We wanted the jam pots in our villages to start boiling again, for jams to become more accessible, and for the new generation to witness this culture. We want to pass down the taste of our mothers’ jams to today’s youth. That’s why we are organizing Turkey’s first Jam Festival.”

Yakaköy Muhtar Nedim Sert also called on all İzmir residents:
“Come and join us, let’s share this sweet feast together. I thank our Mayor and everyone who contributed.”