San Gabriel, CARCHI
Several factors affect the high price of a quintal of potatoes, which in the country reaches a ceiling of $27 in the farms of Carchi, one of the provinces with the highest production of this agricultural product at the national level.
According to experts on the subject, the reduction of crops in Tungurahua, Chimborazo and Cotopaxi would be one of the reasons that raised the price, even more so when marketing depends on supply and demand.
The decrease in hectares planted due to the COVID-19 pandemic triggered tuber prices, says Fernando Chulde, a technician from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, who adds that producers in the center of the country have now gotten into the line of dairy and they stopped planting in 2021 due to high costs.
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Farmers from Carchen and the north of Pichincha claim that planting one hectare tripled and say that the prices of inputs and agrochemicals “are through the roof,” without any control by the authorities to stop speculation.
Planting a hectare two years ago cost $5,000, currently it requires an investment of $6,500 to $7,500, explains Chulde, who estimates that there are about 8,000 papilloma growers in Carchi.
Farmers complain that a quintal of fertilizer that used to cost $27 now costs $52; a bag of urea that was priced at $27 is currently worth $52, among others.
They say production costs have doubled; however, Chulde clarifies that in the last two weeks there was a decrease in values, but minimal.
In Montúfar, small farmers consulted also add that the deliveries of seed and planting kits made by previous governments have been significantly reduced and no longer reach the peasant sectors.
inclement weather
The instability of the climate, constant rains, low temperatures and frosts are phenomena that affect the crops and that causes an increase in costs.
Conditions force the land to be fumigated every three or four days a week, something that implies significant additional investments, says Luis Rosero, a producer from Montúfar.
The workforce also suffered a slight increase, since the farmers chose to become independent from the crews, moving on their own motorcycles. They charge other types of values for the collection services of the different varieties, they are higher.
It is estimated that there are about 3,500 hectares planted in Carchi, that is, 4,000 less than in previous years; however, the current price motivates the farmers who began to plant to take advantage of the high value.
A quintal of the superchola variety costs $27 on the farms and is sold for $28 at the Centro Agroganadero; the capiro is $28 and the single pear is $26.
Closure of fairs affected normal marketing
The temporary closure of the wholesale markets due to the effects of the pandemic created a new trading system that wreaks havoc on local carriers, traders and stevedores, who are part of the chain that benefited from this business.
Now the merchants from the interior of the country go with their own transportation and personnel to the Carchi farms to stock up on the product, leaving aside the local trucks and loaders that provided these services.
The Montúfar Agricultural and Livestock Center, located in Sandial, 5 km from San Gabriel, feels the damage of this type of trade, which until the first months of 2020 was one of the largest national supply centers for this product.
Lucía Román, who has been trading for 25 years in this place (Centro Agroganadero de Montúfar) and moves production to Quito and Guayaquil, points out that business is low.
He argues that there is a shortage of potatoes, several hectares that were planted were attacked by frost, fertilizers tripled and the hectares that exist belong to large farmers who impose prices, taking advantage of the moment.
Values in Quito and Guayaquil and municipal incentives to reactivate the market
Román believes that the price will continue to rise for another five months until the new crops come out. The potato chola that they consume in Quito and Guayaquil is $30 and $32, respectively; while in San Gabriel, Huaca and Tulcán, at $27.
The woman says that before the pandemic she sold 250 quintals, now 100 quintals on each trip.
Luis Valencia, administrator of the Montúfar Agricultural and Livestock Center, confirms that before the pandemic, income from the services provided by the municipality in this modern infrastructure tripled.
“Now the new distribution chain, due to the temporary closure of the fairs, drove buyers and producers away from this sales area,” says Valencia, who adds that the alternative during the most difficult time of COVID-19 was to mobilize the products, making direct purchases, supplying buyers on the farm.
Jaime Benavides, a transporter who charges $0.90 per quintal to take his truck to the capital, assures that they are out of work. He says that the merchants come with their own transport and if before the coronavirus he made between three and four trips, now he fights to be hired for one.
Luis Valencia recognizes that the economic effects are serious for local service providers, who are no longer contracted, and wholesalers now under the new modality (buy on farms) take directly to the transfer centers of Quito and Guayaquil.
The Municipality of Montúfar, owner of the Agricultural and Livestock Center, once it was reopened, proposed a temporary tax incentive ordinance that reduces by 50% the services and lease of premises and warehouses for the sector.
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In the border department (province) of Nariño, opposite Carchi, one of the three largest producers in Colombia, from where potatoes were smuggled into Ecuador, the problem is similar. They point out that the continuous stoppages and blockades, the pandemic and high input costs discouraged production.
A package that represents approximately two quintals in Ecuador reaches a value of $41, that is, $21 a quintal, something that equals prices in Ecuadorian territory, slowing down the irregular passage through the two border strips to both countries, a phenomenon that previously it affected Nariño or Carchi.
Germán Palacios, manager of the Colombian Federation of Potato Producers, reported that the product suffered an increase of 140% in the last year, which the leader describes as two difficult years for the sector. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
