An announcement has been made of a visit by a trade delegation of Spanish companies specializing in agricultural machinery, on April 18 and 19.
The Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Guatemala informed Prensalibre.com that a trade mission of Spanish business people will be visiting the country on April 18 and 19. It will be formed of 15 entrepreneurs from eight Spanish firms belonging to the Spanish Association of Agricultural Machinery.
Unlike other sectors of Panama's dynamic economy, agriculture has not progressed in the last decade.
In the last 10 years, the number of hectares devoted to agriculture has reduced by 70,687, while the number of producers has only increased by 6% to a total of 246,820.
Meanwhile, food imports are now twice that of domestic production, for example in the case of products such as corn or rice.
The local economy is beginning to be affected by the negative impact of the road closures by indigenous people in the province of Chiriqui.
The dairy industry, as well as horticulture, fuel transportation and goods such as drinks and beer are facing extra costs associated with recent events.
Economic losses are in the "millions," said Juan Francisco Kiener, president of the Union of Industrialists in Panama.
The climate phenomenon known as "La Niña" has caused up to 40% losses in some cultivations.
Virgilio Saldaña, president of Panama's Highland Region Growers' Association; indicated that to make matters worse production costs have soared, in some cases by as much as 50%.
"The situation is deeply concerning for producers, particularly of onions, lettuces, carrots, peppers and potatoes, which have not grown sufficiently due to the low temperatures," reports P-digital.com.pa.
The start of the project, which seeks to reduce the loss of perishable goods, has been delayed due to the lack of statistics from the agriculture industry.
Authorities are currently developing the list of products which would be included in the project, and they expect to invite bids on September.
Fernando Duque, executive secretary of the Cold Chain, told newspaper Panamá América that “there are 24 products already included due to their high production volumes. These include lettuce, tomato and cabbage. They also want to check with the supermarkets, to see if any other products must be included”.
A regional investigation is underway, triggered by suspicions of anticompetitive practices when commercializing fertilizers.
These anticompetitive practices would have started when importing companies started buying in group, supposedly to lower the price of fertilizers.
The investigation will be conducted by all the countries of Central America, via a consulting service hired by Conadeco, the Central American Council for Consumer Protection.
7 months after the creation of the Cold Chain Secretary, there are still no concrete proposals for the agricultural industry.
Virgilio Saldaña, president of a grower's association which, added that after each harvest, losses due to perishable goods can reach up to 60%.
Prensa.com published statements by Fernando Duque, executive secretary of the Cold Chain: “In three months we could know where the gathering centers will be located, in order to start implementing this project”.
The project that aims to reduce post harvest losses in Panama started with the creation of the Cold Chain Secretary.
In the first 100 days of the Ricardo Martinelli administration, the Secretary of the Cold Chain, who is still to be named, will have to present a proposal for the program.
As published by Laestrella.com.pa, Hatuey Castro, former director of the Agricultural Marketing Institute (IMA, acronym in Spanish) said that "onion and garden producers would be the ones to benefit the most from this program, as onion production that is lost today because there is no storage available, would be stored and sold in the market in times of shortage"
More than $16 million per year are lost post harvest, so the center will be built with an investment of $2.6 million.
The study by the Institute of Agricultural Marketing (IMA) showed the loss volume and noted that it comes from the post-harvest handling of 25 food products. These results provide the basis for the creation of the Center for Post-Harvest Agricultural Technology.