Turkey is a major agricultural player and serves as an important food hub for its neighboring countries in the water-scarce Middle East and North African region. However, partly due to a lack of natural pasture land, the Turkish livestock sector exhibits low productivity, and this is why the Turkish government has introduced various policies in support of this sector, including direct payments to irrigated fodder crops such as maize for silage. In order to assess the effect of these policies, a single country CGE model has been linked to a water footprint module. Results suggest that removal of Turkish subsidies and tariffs that currently support the livestock sector may not lead to water savings in absolute terms, but would redirect a substantial amount of irrigation water towards crops that Turkey can produce more competitively. Also, it is found that programs for the improvement of livestock genetics in Turkey may lead to net economic gains and overall water savings.