Producers in Chiriqui intend to expand production, increase productivity, and build their own refinery.
An article on Laestrella.com.pa reports that "...Palm oil producers in the province of Chiriqui, grouped into different cooperatives operating in the district of Baru, are aiming to increase productivity and also have their own refinery, in order to be more competitive. "
Improve productivity and use of technology and attracting new foreign investment is part of what the union of exporters has proposed to improve the performance of the industry in the country.
From a statement issued by Agexport:
Lack of innovation, poor performance of logistics and infrastructure in the country and high transportation costs, are some of the challenges to be faced by the manufacturing sector for growth in the next 8 years.
Entrepreneurs and specialists are convening an international conference of agricultural productivity on May 24 and 25 in Nicaragua.
The aims of the Congress is to share experiences that contribute to improving the growth of agricultural activity. Exhibitors from national universities will be taking part along with specialists from local and international private companies, said the Coordinator for Communication and Citizenship Advice, Rosario Murillo to Elnuevodiario.com.ni.
When companies become addicted to meetings, it indicates poor management of working hours and decreases employee productivity by at least 30%.
If companies estimated the losses caused by a dozen employees, mostly senior ones, meeting four times a week they would think twice before giving in to "Meetingitis", the cultural tendency to schedule a meeting for every issue.
Eleven clusters are operating in Costa Rica, in sectors ranging from digital animation to flowers, food or agricultural products, seeking better operating and financial leverage.
Achieving greater access to credit, winning new customers and suppliers, discussing industry issues and possible solutions, more formalized operation or devising new strategies are part of the benefits of belonging to a cluster, a policy that is actively supported by the Costa Rica Foreign Trade Promotion Office (PROCOMER).
Leasing plots of land in the country that are not being used could be an alternative for owners who do not have the resources nor the technology to exploit them.
Nicaragua has almost the same amount of unused land as plots farmed with corn, beans, rice and sorghum. Data from the Fourth National Agricultural Census (CENAGRO 2011) reveals that more than 995,500 blocks of agricultural land are being left unused in the country, which means there is an opportunity to lease land and extract profit, as is done in the housing sector.
Gaps in GDP per capita between different countries are directly related to the productivity gaps between their respective economies, with education being the main factor in these differences.
The OECD report "Promoting inclusive growth of productivity in Latin America" says that although the region made progress in reducing poverty over the past 20 years, it still stands out at the global level, because of the unequal income its inhabitants.
A study by the Central American Academy has concluded that there are market distortions that explain the low productivity of the sector compared with other producing countries.
Summary and conclusions of "Policies for productive development study. Experiences in the case of bananas and cattle "
Beef cattle shows low and stagnant productivity rates, according to the usual measurement standards in the industry.
An announcement has been made of increases of 3% in January and 3% in March 2016 for the rates for services provided by the Operator Port Central Terminal in Cortez.
Entrepreneurs say the planned rise in rates will further affect the competitiveness of the productive sector, which is already battling with the slow pace of customs clearance in the terminal.
In Honduras and Nicaragua the cost that a company must assume to formalize a worker amounts to more than 70% of what they will produce, while in Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panama, it is just under 40%.
From a statement issued by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB):
Formalizing a worker in Latin America costs 39% of what they produce
Wage and non-wage costs relative to productivity, are 50% higher in Latin America than the average in OECD countries.
The sector expects to end the current crop production harvest with 8 million hundredweight, 1.5 million more than in the 2014/15 cycle.
The reason behind the projected increase is the improvement in crop yield, since, according to entrepreneurs reports, productivity per acre rose from ".... between 7 and 8 hundredweight per acre to 14 hundredweight per acre." In fact in "...
More access to loans, promoting the designation of origin and improving brand positioning of Guatemalan Coffees is part of the strategy proposed by the union.
Among the measures the National Coffee Association intends to implement is the exchange of rust resistant varieties with companies such as Starbucks, with whom an agreement was signed to improve the quality of the grain.
The private sector has highlighted the importance of adapting wages to productivity and merits of workers.
From a statement issued by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama:
We achieved consensus in the process of revising the minimum wage
This week the process begins to revise the minimum wage in Panama, a figure that between 2007 and 2015 had a cumulative increase of over 60%, making it today the highest in Latin America. This is in contrast to the lamentable position in which the country is placed in measurements in education, an issue that requires priority attention at all levels.
High production costs, coupled with the progressive reduction in the tariff paid on yellow corn from the United States, are keeping sorghum producers in the country in a state of check.
With the gradual elimination of import yellow corn from the United States, established in DR-CAFTA, a 0% tariff will be reached in 2020, a rate which currently stands at 10.1%.
In a market where half of the demand for milk is met by local production, the lack of water in the Azuero region has reduced milk production by 50%.
Panama depends on an external supply of milk for 46% of its consumption, which is equivalent to approximately 130 million liters per year. 85% of local production is driven by small and medium producers, with current yields being less than 5 liters of milk per cow per day.