Squid and shrimp are the two species with the greatest potential to add added value

Government seeks to increase exports with a new concept of added value

ARGENTINA
Thursday, August 13, 2020, 15:20 (GMT + 9)

The Foreign Trade Cabinet has reported that the ministers were informed that they must present the needs of each productive sector to increase exports. Foreign Minister Felipe Solá asked that raw materials be valued as products with added value.

Desde junio el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores viene manteniendo reuniones virtuales con cámaras empresarias, acompañado por funcionarios de su cartera y los titulares de Producción, Agricultura, Ganadería y Pesca entre otros. En esos encuentros y en el de presentación del Gabinete de Comercio Exterior, Felipe Solá destacó la importancia del sector privado en el desarrollo de las exportaciones y la del Estado como un facilitador. También se refirió entonces a la necesidad de realizar un cambio de mentalidad sobre el concepto de valor agregado, indicando que “los productos primarios tienen un enorme valor agregado”. El lunes, junto al jefe de Gabinete de Ministros, Santiago Cafiero y frente a los ministros de Economía; de Agricultura, Ganadería y Pesca; Desarrollo Productivo; de Ambiente y del titular del Banco Central, el Canciller señaló que necesitan conocer las necesidades de cada sector para aumentar las exportaciones ante la urgencia de dólares que tiene el Estado.

Ambassador Jorge Neme, Secretary for International Economic Relations (left), together with Foreign Minister Felipe Solá

In successive virtual meetings with up to 75 business chambers and during the presentation of the Foreign Trade Cabinet with which it is intended to promote exports, both the Chancellor and the Secretary of International Economic Relations, Jorge Neme, have launched revealing concepts regarding the foreign trade policy that seeks to promote the government as a different view of the value added concept.

“You have to get out of the question of whether or not something has added value: primary products have enormous added value, they have genetics, intelligence, agronomists, the chemical industry ... The problem is not whether or not they have added value, whether they are industry or not . The problem is that they are the lowest value. There is a lot of added value but a low value. So we have to move towards higher value products, "Solá told the business chambers on July 8.

“With this criterion, why not think that if there was a Dead Cow there may be a live cow that exports corn grain or pork or poultry, just to give examples. It is necessary to start from a change of mentality so that Argentine exports of agroindustrial origin explode ", indicated the Chancellor and recalled that the criterion applied for the existence of Vaca Muerta was" 'let's do everything necessary for this to happen "and" Why not have the same criteria towards increasing the export of agroindustrial products? ”He asked.

Foto: gentileza La Nación

Jorge Neme said, in that same meeting, that the idea is to maintain an open dialogue and produce results, "because the country needs foreign exchange, especially in an international context of high uncertainty and falling demand." When referring specifically to food producers, he indicated that it is a sector that “can be defended well and that is why this work will help us to give a perspective of how world demand is today and in what way we can work together to be able to increase the level of our exports ”.

At the first meeting of the Foreign Trade Cabinet, the Chancellor made the survey of opportunities in agri-food markets available to the ministers. According to them, they reported a month ago, in a first stage, sixty-two markets in ten regions were marked as priorities and for each market a prioritization of up to five products that have exportable potential.

“Most of the opportunities to explore correspond to cereals and oilseeds, vegetable oils (soy, sunflower, olive), meats (beef, poultry, pork), fresh fruits, nuts, fish products, dairy products (milk, milk in powder, cheeses), flours, wines, yerba mate, sweets and food preparations ”, they reported. If the list respects the order of the established potential, fishing does not seem to be one of the most benefited by the requirements of the analyzed markets.

Despite the fluid communication that is intended from the Ministry of Foreign Trade, reality shows that, at least in the Fisheries portfolio, this fluidity is not occurring. Just a week ago from the Idea Foundation, referents from the sector were summoned to draw up a consensus document of the measures to be proposed, on which they begin to work.

When the Foreign Ministry created last month the Public Private Council for the Promotion of Exports, in which 180 chambers participate, among which CaPeCA was included, Solá highlighted the need to generate “a company partnership with a State that helps, that be in good times and in bad times, that he understands the problems of the sector, the region, the product or the market ”.

“We do not decide what is exported or how it is exported, but we know where the possibilities are and what they need, and promote an export from the bottom up. We have to identify key markets with you ”, he assured and highlighted the importance of this Council“ so as not to err in the diagnosis ”. He added that "there are very important value chains in the world and Argentina does not have to invent a new one, but rather invent its space in those chains."

Probably the need for dollars contributes to greater dynamism and a real support from the State in facilitating exports. "Increase exports so that Argentina does not have the classic problem of anguish in the balance of payments. If it becomes unbalanced, more dollars are needed and we don't have them, then either the exchange rate escapes or the indebtedness begins, ”Solá told the ministers.

Author: Karina Fernandez / Revista Puerto

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