Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez on Wednesday launched a new Turkish-made dishwasher liquid detergent product, which will be marketed under the brand name BORON.

“The raw material borax is a natural mineral element. In addition to boron, other raw materials that do not contain hazardous substances on human health or the environment were also used (in the product),” Dönmez said at the launch event at the Energy Ministry in the capital Ankara.

The new product will join others that have been produced from boron under the BORON brand that do not contain petroleum-derived, chemical and phosphate components. "Thanks to these ingredients, boron has quickly become the first choice of our citizens," the minister said.

The launch comes at a time during the pandemic when demand for eco-friendly and more organic cleaning products has peaked, he said, adding that this eco product has a positive edge over its rivals on the market.

The new product comes in three types: dishwasher liquid, washing up liquid and cleaning product.

Female engineers, chemists and lab technicians from the research and development (R&D) department of Turkey’s national mining company, Eti Maden, were part of the product development process, he explained.

“Female employment and participation in the energy sector is a priority because the sector needs the attention to detail, the multitasking skills and sensitivity that women can offer,” he said.

In January 2019, Turkey’s first domestically produced detergent product from boron was introduced, and in November four new BORON detergent products were launched.

On April 15 this year, Turkey introduced a new BOREL-branded hand sanitizer, which is also derived from the boron element.

Turkey has a total of 3.3 billion tons of boron, equating to 73% of the world’s total reserves, making Turkey the world’s number one in terms of reserves.