Rice and sugar, the most affected by diesel

Ecuadornews:

The rise in the price of diesel has a week in effect, but farmers just yesterday decided to encourage themselves to reject the situation. They do it because they feel “cheated” by the Government, which, initially, assured that the sector would not be affected. But it is.

The latest government measures not only resolved to continue increasing this year the price of gallon of industrial diesel, which is generally used in agricultural machinery (currently stands at $ 2.65, $ 0.75 more than what it cost in October 2017), but to lower the monthly quota of the subsidized fuel that benefits the small farmer. Before, 2,000 gallons could be accessed, today 1,500.

Meeting yesterday at a press conference, convened by the Chamber of Agriculture of the II Zone, the representatives of the rice and sugar sectors were concerned about this measure, they say, will exacerbate the high production costs that are in the field.

Only the sugar sector, said Miguel Perez, president of the Federation of the National Sugar Federation (Fenazucar), must pay an additional $ 6,000,000 per year, due to the increase in the cost of this input. The mills, he explained, are being charged an industrial tariff, “even though a single gallon is not consumed in the factories. The use is in the field to light pumps that are used to water, to drain, for trucks that help to move the harvest, tractors, kangaroos. “

Julio Carchi, representative of the rice sector, believes that the effects will begin to be seen in the coming days when small farmers resume their tasks and see increase the costs of renting certain machinery. “They will be the most affected because they do not have harvesters, they do not have tractors. If I do not need two hours for a tracked, two, three hours for a fangueada, with the rise of diesel that will represent an increase of approximately 120 and 150 dollars per hectare, “he said.

The increase is considerable, he said, if one observes the economic losses with which some agricultural sectors such as rice are already working. If this policy is maintained, he stressed, the logical thing is that the government also considers eliminating certain taxes (such as tariffs) to balance the costs of the sector. An imported harvester machine, in Ecuador it is sold up to $ 300.0000, when in neighboring countries it is half that price. (I)

Source: https://www.expreso.ec/economia/arroz-azucar-mas-afectados-diesel-LD2588278