The Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Juan Jose Bahillomet this Monday in Rosario with his peers from the provinces of Santa Fe, Buenos Aires, Córdoba, La Pampa and Entre Ríos, with whom he evaluated aid measures for producers of the different activities affected by the drought.
After meeting with the provincial ministers, Bahillo also held a meeting with the heads of the Liaison Table to discuss the alternatives being explored by the Government, which will ultimately be decided by the Ministry of Economy.
Regarding the meeting with his provincial peers, Bahillo described as “positive” the meeting and remarked “the contribution of the ministers who know in depth the affected territories, to enrich the measures that we are working on from the Ministry of Agriculture with the aim of bringing relief to producers”, explaining that they include a assistance plan for dairy, pig and poultry producers, both for meat and egg production.
After finishing the meeting, Bahillo said that although “there are no announcements”, he will talk with the Minister of Economy, Sergio Massato evaluate the steps that will be taken in the short term.
“I take different opinions and ideas, Sergio Massa asked me and we will finish defining measures in a few days“, he added.
In a press conference, Bahillo pointed out that “there is a firm request from the provincial authorities and the Liaison Table to speed up the declaration of emergency, and to be able to extend the payment of the Profit advance.”
For his part, the Minister of Agrarian Development of Buenos Aires said that it was “an important exchange meeting and joint work with the aim of bringing relief to all producers affected by the climate emergency.
“From the province of Buenos Aires We have different lines of financing and non-refundable contributions to alleviate the effects of this drought. We understand that the situation is also affecting productions such as swine, poultry and dairy, and for this reason special emphasis was placed on outlining actions focused on these activities,” Rodríguez added.
Along the same lines, the Santa Fe Minister of Production, Science and Technology, daniel costamagna, He welcomed the fact that this meeting “has been held in the interior of the country, with the presence of the ministers of the core region and of the rural entities” and pointed out that “the drought situation in Santa Fe is very serious.”
“We proposed issues of financial and tax support, and that the solutions come quickly, because the producer has the problem today. We have deaths on the farm in the north and a wheat harvest with losses of almost 50%. We are also in the middle of the season planting and today it is interrupted because you do not have humidity in the profile. The present is as worrisome as what could happen in 2023 with corn, milk, meat, pig production, poultry, among others,” concluded the leader from Santa Fe .
In turn, the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Córdoba, Sergio Bussopointed out that “the support has to be quick”, indicating that “in Córdoba the drought is uneven, it is seen in the yields of wheat.”
Along the same lines, the Secretary of Agriculture of Entre Ríos, Lucio Amavetqualified the meeting positively “because we were able to come to share our vision of the impact that the drought is having and talk about what should be the lines that help to alleviate the situation for producers“.
From the Liaison Table, the 2nd Vice President of the Argentine Rural Society (SRA), Raul Etchebeherestressed the “urgency” of the affected producers to that the situation of agricultural emergency be declaredto be able to access tax and credit benefits that help them alleviate their losses.
“Aid that does not arrive in time and form does not help,” Etchebehere stressed.
The meeting of the entities of the Liaison Table took place in Rosario after the frustrated meeting called last week, when the leaders of the field decided not to attend to speak with Bahillo on the grounds that the request for an audience was made to Minister Sergio Massa.
According to the latest report from the National Drought Monitoring Table, which heads the national agricultural portfolio, the area affected by the lack of water reaches 165 million hectares at the country level, with its epicenter in the so-called core zone.
Of this total, the drought impacts 1.4 million hectares of crops and 20 million head of cattle
In the meetings held this Monday, Bahillo was accompanied by the Secretary’s Chief of Staff, Juan Manuel Fernández Arocena; the Undersecretary of Livestock and Animal Production, José María Romero; the Undersecretary of Administrative Management, Rosendo Tarsetti; the undersecretary of Food, Bioeconomy and Regional Development, Luis Contigiani; the coordinator of FONDAGRO, José Portillo; and the adviser on international issues and emergencies, Ariel Martínez.
The Liaison Table was also attended by the president of the Agrarian Federation (FAA) Carlos Achetoni; the head of Rural Confederations (CRA), Jorge Chemes; and his pair from Coninagro, Elbio Laucirica.
