“We need that the hides are processed here and, for this, we are asking that the measure not be lifted”, he claims in dialogue with Ambit Daniel Argentino, president of the Tannery Association of the Province of Buenos Aires (ACUBA), one of the entities that signed the letter.
A measure widely discussed by the Macri government
And he explains that, in June 2020 and until December 31 of that year, based on the Covid 19 Pandemic and the exceptionality of world trade, the national government authorized the export of salted hides under the pretext of reducing the meat value for consumers, but they assure that the desired end was not achieved.
“We do not understand why this decision is being made now because, in the current management, it never happened to us. On the other hand, during the previous government, louis etchevere, first as president of the rural society and, later, as Minister of Agriculture, always wanted to repeal that measure. But, every time he tried to turn it around, he couldn’t do it because we managed to counterbalance it, demonstrating the importance of the sector, ”says Argentino.
So much so, that when the government ended and Etchevere left office, signed the release of export rights to 12 million hides. But this management restored it.
The note, signed by 13 entities, among which are different unions from the leather and related industries, footwear and leather goods in the country, as well as by the chambers of the tanning and leather manufacturing industries, maintains that “leather only represents 1.7% of the price of cattle” and denounces that “this measure goes against the principle of value added by the national industry.”
Likewise, Argentino point out that, in 2022, with the right to leather exports In force, likewise, 50% of the raw hides were sold abroad. He maintains, then, that the Government, in addition, from a tax point of view, collects this tax. “Last year, they charged it on 6 million skins. That money would not enter him anymore ”, he indicates.
According to the sector, the official announcement is responding to “an old claim from the refrigeration industry aimed at reprimand the economyreturning to colonial times”, which is disguised behind the arguments that measures like these will ensure that Argentine consumers have access to beef at a lower price.
“There are sectors that are pressing for this, taking advantage of the situation, without a doubt, but if we export the salted hidesthere is no guarantee that meat prices will drop,” denounces Argentino.
A measure that protects the added value
The sectoral representative describes that the tax on this type of exports protects the leather chain from fierce competition posed by the two big opponents that tanners have in the world: Chinaon the one hand, “against whom we cannot compete neither in volume nor in prices”, and, on the other hand, Italybecause the ‘made in Italy’ stamp makes Argentine leather worth twice as much (both because of the tradition of the Italian tanning industry, as well as because of a country brand associated with fashion and because those products are closer to Europeans who consume leather) .
and stresses the importance of take care of local added value. “Civilized countries do not export raw material without first transforming it locally, otherwise, they would be creating employment in the purchasing country and unemployment in the country in the exporting country. Let’s not export leather, let’s export shoes,” the letter reads.
In fact, the leather value chain and its manufactures, which last year produced 100 million pairs of shoes and millions of units of leather goods, saddlery and leather goods.
“The tanning sector is the first to lose, but after there is a chain behindwhich involves shoe manufacturers and leather goods. They are going to have to start buying the hides abroad if they are not processed in the country”, warns Argentino.
and points out that They do not lose hope that the Government will listen to them and that Minister Massa will attend to them to review the measurement. Above all, taking into account that, in the tanning sector, about 12,000 people work today and, in the complete chain, more than 50,000since, although the tannery is a sector that consumes little manpower, that of footwear and leather goods consume a lot and more than 40% of these industries use leather.
“Fifty thousand Job positions They cannot be lost, for going in search of an unverifiable and derisory decrease in the price of meat. Without work, without income, nobody goes to the supermarket. We request from the Ministry of Economy of the Nation, that the announced measures are not put into effect, the consequences of doing so will be irreparable ”, concludes the note that the 13 entities that comprise it presented from the sector.
Source: Ambito
