The damages of the drought reached practically the entire agricultural sector in Uruguay, but the industry dad He was one of the hardest hit. The vast majority of these crops, mainly located in the department of San José, were damaged and, to ensure the catering, the producers they began to import the product.
The negative effects in the sector were quickly transferred to prices. In the latest report from the National Statistics Institute (INE), which reported 0.9% monthly inflation –and 7.33% year-on-year–, potatoes registered an increase of 20.17% in March and, along with carrots (41.53%), oranges (31.15%) and lettuce (28%) became the foods that became more expensive that month.
Drought is the great cause of this shot. For both the carrot and the dad, raw materials that are usually grown in Uruguay, the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP) recommended that producers import part of their production to complement it with the national production and guarantee supply,
Imported potatoes: how the system of complementing national production will work
The engineer Fernando Miettopresident of the National Association of Uruguayan Potato Seed Growers (Ansepa)confirmed that the first imports of the product are already entering.
“Producers maintain our national offer. and responsibly we are going to cover what we may be missing with imported production. We are going to cover, in an orderly manner, what is missing to ensure the supply, ”he confirmed in a conversation with Radio World.
According to the head of the agrarian entity, potatoes planted between the end of December and around January 15 are the ones that suffered “the greatest impact” and, within the total planting in January, “will mean approximately 10 or 12%”.
Meanwhile, the proposal agreed with the MGAP will imply a window period of about “one month or less”and depending on what growers start harvesting in the coming weeks.
Ansepa was organized into work teams, where some producers are part of the purchasing, receiving and logistics, and cold, others accompany the entire sales process. “We seek to favor the entire chain,” stated Mietto.
This is the first time that the agricultural portfolio offers producers to participate in the process of importing the product. And actually, 20 companies are on the import list and “there is some more to be added”, as he stated to Underlined engineer Mietto, who also invited producers from the east, center and north of the country to join the initiative, whether or not they are members of the association.
The president of Ansepa confirmed in turn that, according to the first imports, “the value at which It is the same value as the national potato”. “Our commitment is to keep that going,” she added.
Source: Ambito
