Marco Belmonte / La Paz
The Government determined the importation of up to 10,000 tons of wheat flour to guarantee the supply of the market and avoid shortages and rise in the price of bread.
The purchase from abroad will be made by Insumos Bolivia with resources from the Revolving Fund for Food Security, created in 2012, as provided by Ministerial Resolution 058-2022 of the Ministry of Productive Development and Plural Economy approved on March 28. For this purpose, that state entity was authorized to use 44 million Bolivians from this fund.
This mechanism was created in 2010 with the resources that were transferred by the commercialization of imported sugar at that time to supply the market, as defined by Supreme Decree 677 of that year.
Resolution 058-2022 establishes that there is an increase in the price of flour in international markets due to the war conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and due to this context, the cost of this product in the national market has an upward trend.
This can affect, in turn, the final price of battle bread and affect the basic basket of families. “By virtue of this, there is a need to have a safety stock of flour that allows anticipating a probable risk of collapse of small and medium-sized production units whose raw material is flour, since its scarcity could generate shortages and an increase in price. of battle bread, for which it concludes that it is necessary to request the Ministry of Productive Development to authorize the use of resources from the Revolving Fund for Food Security, in the amount of 44 million Bolivians, an amount destined for the importation of up to 10,000 tons of wheat flour, for its subsequent commercialization in the national market”, specifies Resolution 058-2022.
The president of the National Confederation of Artisan Bakers, Juan Cachacatari, informed that this will help to meet the demand of the baker and not depend on the flour that is sold in the markets and that has risen in price to 190 and 220 bolivianos, the best quality.
The sector hopes that this input can be imported soon and can be marketed at an adequate price that does not exceed 200 bolivianos per quintal.
The executive of the Federation of Bakers of La Paz, Dandy Mallea, hopes that the flour imported by the Government can reach all the sectors that make bread.
This because the price of Argentine flour in the market skyrocketed. “Welcome to that flour, 10,000 tons is not enough, but something is going to alleviate the demand, we hope that they will call us as a sector and we can be delivered for 165 bolivianos at least,” he said.
Mallea said that even the Emapa flour that can be bought in its stores, if you buy four arrobas, the cost reaches 188 or 190 bolivianos.
He added that other products such as the 17-kilo can of butter rose from 220 to 245 bolivianos and sugar, which before Todos Santos cost 150 bolivianos, in January rose to 165 bolivianos. “Now it is between 190 and 195 and 200 bolivianos,” she observed.
