Exporters of ornamental plants are waiting for government approval in order to be part of the delegation which will request the reopening of the European market, which has been closed since May 2015.
The Chamber of Producers and Exporters of Plant Products (Caprodex) argues that the request was made on July 8 to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) and there has not yet been a response to the request to attend on September 22 the meeting to be held in Brussels to demand the reopening of the market for ornamental plants from Costa Rica.In May2015the European Union banned ornamental coffee plants from Costa Rica and Hondurasin order to prevent the entry of the bacteria Xylella fastidiosa.
In Costa Rica the number of registered firms exporting ferns and foliage fell from 78 to 48 between 2008 and 2013 while exports fell by 46%.
The international crisis that began in late 2008 significantly affected the export sector of foliage and ferns in Costa Rica, which to date has not been recovered the levels prior to the onslaught of the crisis =.
Foreign sales have been negatively affected by a loss of competitiveness with other exporting countries.
In 2013 flower exports fell by 5.4% compared to 2012, due to a loss of competitiveness against other exporters and climatic effects in some growing areas.
"The export of ornamental plants has been losing a lot of space, mainly because some countries are more competitive than us in this respect, in addition to problems such as a fluctuating exchange rate and the depression experienced by major export markets," said the President of the Chamber of Exporters of Costa Rica (Cadexco), Monica Segnini.
Costa Rica is not allowing the entry of potatoes from the U.S. and customs in Miami have increased controls on ornamental plants coming from Costa Rica.
It has been assumed that the increased controls on ornamental plants occurred after the State Phytosanitary Service (SFE) of Costa Rica suspended the issuance of phytosanitary requirement forms for importing U.S. potatoes.
Changes introduced by the government of Costa Rica in the composition of the staple goods basket, have forced producers to pay 13% more for raw materials.
An article in Elfinancierocr.com reports that "Diego Gil, vice president of the Chamber and exporter of ornamental plants, believes that for a sector full of micro and small businesses, it is unsustainable for most of them not to be able to include the 13% tax on sales of their products because it is unclear if they are exonerated, but they have to pay their suppliers of raw materials."
Fewer orders from abroad, falling prices and the devaluation of the dollar have affected the sector.
According to the Foreign Trade Promoter, Procomer, in the case of ornamental plants the values were $ 83 million in 2008, $ 67 million in 2009 and $ 78 million in 2010.
For foliage the values were $ 77 million in 2008, $ 64 million in 2009 and $ 63 million in 2010.
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