Marco Belmonte / Page Seven
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is already having repercussions in Bolivia with the rise in the price of flour from 165 to 210 bolivianos per quintal, although the Food Production Support Company (Emapa) guarantees the supply and that the battle bread does not suffer no increase.
The president of the Association of Industrial Millers (ADIM), Carlos Gutiérrez, reported that Bolivia imports a lot of wheat flour and that has a direct impact on market prices.
“Flour has already gone up in price, there is a constant increase. A month ago it was 165 bolivianos per quintal, but now it is 210 bolivianos, on average, ”he specified in contact with Página Siete.
He explained that the western bakery industry relies on Emapa’s flour supply and that guarantees that the price of battle bread does not suffer an increase.
“This increase in the price of flour goes to bakeries, marginal bread markets that do not have access to Emapa flour, the price of cookies and bagged bread should rise. Industrial companies access flour at market prices”, specified the industrialist.
He added that this will also have an impact on the industry that makes noodles and other pasta.
Until November of last year, a quintal of the imported product was up to 140 bolivianos, a price lower than that sold by Emapa at that time, which was between 147 and 150 bolivianos.
70% of the flour consumed in the country comes mainly from Argentina and 30% of the national supply.
Figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) processed by the Bolivian Institute of Foreign Trade (IBCE) reveal that in 2019 Bolivia imported flour worth 111 million dollars, the following year it reached 127 million dollars and in 2021 it fell to $92.8 million. In January, flour was brought in for a value of 5.7 million dollars (see graph).
The executive of the Federation of Bakers of La Paz, Dandy Mallea, agreed that the quintal of flour rose from 165 to 210 bolivianos. “Yesterday (Thursday) we met with all the sector leaders and it has been decided to declare a state of emergency, because the price of a quintal of flour on the market has risen disproportionately. What used to cost 165, 160 today that same flour costs 200, 210 bolivianos. And, to top it off, there is no flour that can be offered in grocery stores, ”he told Red Uno.
The manager of Emapa, Franklin Flores, assured that the entity guarantees the distribution of flour to the bakery sector to keep the price of battle bread stable.
“We guarantee all the flour required by the bakery sector. To date, Emapa has around 130,000 tons of wheat stored in the silos of the Bolivian State, therefore, the families that remain calm have the necessary wheat”, he clarified.
Flores reported that there is sufficient stock to grind and produce 1.6 million quintals of flour to distribute to bakeries and this management is scheduled to store 200 thousand tons of wheat to guarantee the supply of flour in 2023.
The Government has an agreement signed with the bakery sector, which was signed last January, to keep the price of bread stable at 50 Boliviano cents in La Paz, El Alto and Cochabamba; 40 cents in Oruro and 30 cents in Potosí, among other regions.
The president of the Federation of Neighborhood Boards (Fejuve) of La Paz, René Ballivián, rejected the possible increase in the price of the bread unit, after the bakers denounced the increase in the quintal of flour and did not rule out mobilizations to avoid affecting the family basket of the people of La Paz.
“On behalf of the 633 neighborhood boards and the 150 native communities, we convey to the population that we have made a decision not to allow the rise in the price of bread and if this happens, we will take the appropriate measures, from mobilizations to a stoppage of activities” , I note.
He warned that a possible increase in the price of bread will unleash inflation in the country.
According to the portal of the newspaper El Cronista of Argentina, in that country in five days the price of flour increased by 70% due to the war between Russia and Ukraine.
In Peru it increased by 12 soles in recent days. The bag went from 122 to 136 soles, reported Infobae.
They warn inflation and damages in grain importing countries
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has blown up the prices of raw materials, a scenario that in Latin America could benefit countries that export grains and hydrocarbons, but would harm importers, although both of them will suffer greater inflationary pressures than will erode their prospects for economic growth this year.
Latin American countries that need to import grains fear the effects of inflation. “If there is less wheat for everyone, there will be a rise in price and we will have an impact on the basic basket,” Carlos Posada, executive director of the Foreign Trade Research and Development Institute of the Lima Chamber of Commerce, told EFE. .
The war in the distant Ukraine may cause a shortage of fertilizers.
According to a report by the Rosario Stock Exchange (Argentina), Russia is the world’s leading supplier of fertilizers of all kinds, accounting for about 13% of global trade.
Since the beginning of the conflict, prices have skyrocketed, generating a headache in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Paraguay, which could face problems in supplying themselves and, eventually, suffer cuts in their agricultural production. (EFE)
