Costa Rica: Rice Subsidy Only benefits Large Producers
In Costa Rica, the current mechanism mainly benefits 30 large producers, who received $80 million in subsidies in 2011.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Despite warnings from the WTO, Costa Rica continues to subsidize rice production, a benefit which actually goes to about 30 large companies, rather than groups of small producers, and is "an unnecessary risk" according to the former Foreign Trade Minister Alberto Trejos, who added that "it is like going to the Country Club in Escazú to hand out Family Allowance resources."
These are excerpts from an interview with Trejos in Nacion.com:
How did this distortion come about?
"We created the mechanism in order to help the small producers during a time of crisis, nine years ago, temporarily. That moment has passed, and we still have the mechanism in place as if nothing had happened, only that instead of limiting it to just benefit small producers, we have extended it so that 80% of it goes to the largest. These producers, not only grow the most on the farms but are also those who benefit from importing, making them even less helpless."
What should be done to resolve this problem?
"One way to fix this would be to eliminate (rice) pricing by law, raising money one way or another-through the Rice Corporation, including one part of the value of tariffs for shortages, as is done today, and , yes, assign just that part, limiting them to the $15.9 million allowed by the WTO agreements, which are almost 20 years old, and making sure it goes to the real targets, the poor rice producers who need to make a transition to higher productivity or another crop which their land favors better."
The subsidy of $190 million paid by consumers "will not primarily go to producers but to large industrial companies which process domestic crops and who are, at the same time, importers."
In his blog on Elfinancierocr.com, Juan Carlos Hidalgo discusses the singular phenomenon that occurs in Costa Rica, where the rice policy initially intended to protect small rice producers, has become an unjust wealth transfer mechanism between sectors of society.
The Government is standing firm in its position to eliminate state fixing of the price of rice and aims to organize the cooperative sector.
According to Mayi Antillon, chief of Economy, Industry and Trade from March 2014 the price of rice will be unfixed in order to benefit small farmers and reduce the price for consumers.
The Costa Rican government has informed the WTO that from March next year it will cease the pricing system by which domestic rice producers are subsidized.
From 1st March 2014 rice subsidies will be removed, which could end the dispute with the U.S. and other WTO members on account of aid given to rice farmers.
The country presented its new national rice policy before the World Trade Organization.
It aims to address competitiveness issues and to solve the lack of compliance with international regulations on domestic agricultural subsidies.
Although this new strategy was welcomed at the WTO, many countries believe it is not enough, especially because the country has not specified a date to remove the subsidy mechanism.
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