The surge in COVID-19 cases in Turkey is causing more restrictions and precautions set by both the government and local denim mills.
According to the World Health Organization’s April 6 situation report, Turkey has confirmed 27,069 cases of the coronavirus and 574 related deaths. On April 3, the Turkish Ministry of Health responded to the influx by instilling a curfew for people under 20 and banning all inter-province travel in the hopes of containing the coronavirus.
From April 3-18, all entry and exit for the country’s 31 provinces will be banned, excluding essential deliveries such as food, medicine and certain logistics vehicles. Additionally, it is now mandatory for people to wear cloth face masks in public spaces.
Just a week prior, the country instilled a curfew for people over 65, as the senior demographic is said to be one of the most susceptible to the virus.
As Turkey is a global hub for denim production, the country’s latest restrictions are causing some businesses to change their strategies.
Calik Denim announced in an Instagram post that it will extend its production and administrative work break from April 3 to April 11.
“In this process, we are enacting all precautions at the highest level, and preparing new action plans to keep up with developments,” the post read.
Other mills are continuing to produce, but doing so with a number of precautions and limitations.
Bossa had closed its facilities in Adana for two weeks and partially re-opened on April 6. At the start of each day, the workplace is chemically disinfected, and each employee’s temperature is checked as they walk through the doors to monitor for signs of a fever. Employees are instructed to wear special masks and maintain the appropriate distance between one another.
“We believe humans will overcome this virus, and we will meet together again in healthy days,” a Bossa representative told Rivet.
