Employers claim that the measure has distorted the market and are demanding to suspend it once the six months period ends.
According to the government, the lack of some products with regulated prices in supermarkets is due to a strategy used by companies to get the measure suspended, however, they claim that the situation is due to the distortion in marketing processes caused by the measure.
30% of grain plantations in the province of Chiriqui are being affected by an outbreak of the mite Spinky.
This pest is "... considered one of the most hazardous in the world, having the peculiarity of multiplying very fast in plantations and thereby affecting yields per hectare", reported Prensa.com.
According to authorities, the outbreak appeared because farmers are using seeds which are contaminated and of dubious origin.
It will not be until February next year that there will be a discussion on import quotas, when a new inventory will be compiled.
Prices, climate issues and lack of funding will results in failure to achieve the goal of planting 67,000 hectares of rice in the current crop.
However, the chief of the Rice Growers Association of Chiriqui (Apache), Carlos Santanach, said that the local market will have not have shortage of rice and that this years new crop is currently growing.
The disadvantage in terms of productivity and prices of Panamanian rice farmers against major world producers, has trapped producers, many of whom are abandoning the crop.
If this problem is not resolved, consequences will start to be felt. The country could stop planting about 20,000 hectares, said sources close to the sector.
The leader of the Rice Growers Association of Chiriqui (Apach), Carlos Santanach, said there are issues to be further discussed with the government such as financing, the use of irrigation, the rearrangement of imports and the adequacy of land.
The producer group is asking the government to put imports in order, strengthen phytosanitary requirements and reform the law that created the National Food Authority.
Capital.com.pa reports that "The issue of imports continues to hit producers and their regulation is one of the requirements of the newly created ‘Pro-Rescate’ (Pro-Rescue) Group of the Agricultural Sector, but it is a sensitive issue, which has to be at the highest level, because this was one of the risks of globalization policies and signing FTAs and changing the rules of the game again now is not easy. Among the main demands of the Group is to sort out imports, strengthen phytosanitary requirements and reform the law that created the National Food Authority (Auspa). "
The amount of areas planted with rice is lower than last year, while corn has grown, generating storage problems.
Capital.com reports that for rice "Over the past year 1.3 million quintals had to be imported and now we have to wait until the end of the harvest in order to determine the amount that will be needed to be brought in from abroad, which is assumed will be greater. "
Panama's government has reduced import taxes on 42 food products in order to lower the price to consumers.
The list includes some products considered sensitive to Panamanian producers, such as cheese, coffee and tomatoes, whose tariffs fell from 30% to 10%.
"Also added to these are other foods of low production in Panama such as turkey, Jasmine rice, pancakes, popcorn, corn appetizer, goat milk and cheese, which registered sharp falls in tariffs", reports panamaamerica.com.pa .
The rice mill belonging to producers in Chiriqui is now being offered at $2 million, $1 million less than the initial price.
After a failed attempt to sell the rice mill members of the Rice Producers Association and Basic Grains of Chiriqui (Apach) in Alanje, have reduced the price from $3 million to $2 million.
At an auction last week made through the Agricultural Commodity Exchange only one proponent presented themselves with a bid of only a million dollars, reported Prensa.com.
The auction of a rice mill by the Association of Rice Producers of Chiriqui was declared void because of lack of offers to reach the established base price.
The base price for auction through the Agricultural Commodity Exchange was $3.5 million, well above the single offer of $1.4 million by a group of seven millers.
The mill belonging to the Rice Growers Association of Chiriqui (Apach) located in Alanje, was built two years ago with a loan from Banco Nacional de Panama (BNP). The facility includes eight silos where 480 thousand quintals of grain can be stored.
The base price is $3 million and the auction will be conducted on the Bolsa Nacional de Productos (National Stock Market) in Panama.
The mill owned by the Rice Growers Association of Chiriqui (Apach) in Alanje, will be auctioned on Thursday 19th April on the National Stock Market (Baisa) with a base price of $3 million.
The rice growers guild has a debt of $6.7 million with the Banco Nacional de Panama (BNP).
Domestic production from this agricultural cycle will leave a shortfall of 9,000 hectares.
While the Panamanian rice sector has never been able to satisfy domestic demand, in this cycle it will be even more dependent on imports. In 2010, 64,400 hectares were planted and 1.2 million bushels of grain had to be imported, while at present only 57,456 have been planted, falling far short of the projected target of 68,000.
Martinelli has appointed a producer as a second in command to the sector’s ministry.
Amid the differences that have arisen between farmers and the government, which has led the former to require, among other things, a cessation of onion and potato imports, the government has announced the appointment of a producer to the position of Vice Minister of Agricultural Development.
Producers say it will be difficult to take advantage of the trade agreements that have been signed.
Negotiations with countries like Peru, Colombia and the eventual ratification of the treaty with the United States are worrying producers, who believe they are not prepared to compete under the new conditions.
Panamanian government representatives consider that in the case of the TPC with the U.S., the seven-year grace period to be given to the producers before it becomes effective will give producers time to finish preparing in order to compete in equal conditions.
3 to 4 million quintals must be imported according to estimations by farmers.
Rice growers from the province of Chiriquí won't be able to reach their goal of planting 65.000 hectares.
"We'll hardly reach 50.000 hectares, and 7 million quintals are needed to supply the market. We'll only get 5", said Alexander Araúz, president of the Rice Growers Association of Chiriquí, known as Apach.
Authorities and growers are considering installing neutral laboratories to certify rice quality.
Panamanian officials will visit Nicaragua in September, to learn about this country's experience, as they have 12 laboratories operating in the most important rice mills.
"Abelardo Carles, manager of the National Product Exchange (Baisa), explained that they intend to install a laboratory with interested mills, but they would be independent", reported Prensa.com. "Baisa would assume the cost, which would range between $20.000 and $25.000 for each one".
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