The rice sector and the authorities of Department of agriculture They met yesterday with the aim of finding a way out of the impact that the rises in the prices of the inputs that are used for the production of the cereal on the Dominican Republic.
“We agreed to create a proposal to take it to the President of the Republic in an attempt to ensure that the producers of rice let’s have a satisfactory solution to prices, without affecting consumers,” he said. Marcelo Reyespresident of the National Federation of Rice Growers (Fenarroz).
He said that it is a complex situation because costs have increased by more than 30% for the producing sector.
“The dialogue table is opening, it is a delicate situation, where the State will have to play a leading role to find a way out of this situation,” Reyes said.
The sector is being affected by increases in the prices of fertilizers, labor, fuel and machinery, among others.
“There are a series of inputs that have increased significantly in recent months, which means that the cost of production has increased by 30%”President of the Dominican Association of Rice Factories (Adofa).
He added that both producers, the government and millers have practically remained in permanent session looking for a way out of the issue.
“A few months ago the government allocated a significant sum to subsidize fertilizers, but we understand, both the producers and the industrial part, that it is not enough for the producer to reach a minimum of profitability,” he pointed out.
On his side, Manuel Suazo, president of the Association of Manufacturers, Representatives and Importers of Crop Protection Products (Afipa), said that the subsidy came to help and alleviate the fertilizer crisis in the country.
“The subsidy had a duration; the subsidy has already been consumed right now, and fertilizers are still equally expensive internationally”President of AFIP
He said that he understands that the Government must take some other alternative or look for the subsidy again in order to face the issue of prices.
“There are many examples that it was positive. One case is that of San Juan, where all agroservices lowered the prices of fertilizers. Fertilizers were priced at 2,500 pesos and fell to 1,500 pesos per quintal. What happens is that now there is nothing of the amount that the government arranged (RD $ 1,600 million) ”, he indicated.
He pointed out that: “If the producer is talking about it again, it is because the subsidized fertilizers have already finished and the prices have returned to where they were before.”
He added that the subsidies impacted many producers, especially the rice sector.
“Everything has gone up: the cost of fuel, the cost of labor and the cost of agrochemicals is definitely impacting the producer; It’s not just the fertilizers. In general, all the producers worldwide have production problems because they have very high cost problems”, he highlighted.
