Argentina: “A serving of French fries costs more than a bag of potatoes at the market.”

The Argentine fruit and vegetable sector is going through a critical period, with producers struggling to maintain their farms in a context of high production costs and sales prices that don’t reflect their investment. Omar Carrasco, head of the Argentine Fruit and Vegetable Union, spoke with DE UNA and expressed his deep concern about this situation and the lack of consistency between origin prices and those paid by consumers in the market.

In a recent report, the Argentine Fruit and Vegetable Union revealed the disparity between the cost of producing a bag of potatoes and the final sale price. Carrasco exemplified this situation: "A portion of potatoes costs 8,000 pesos, and a bag of potatoes is selling for 6,000, so there’s no alignment with what it actually costs to produce and sell them." The head of the organization explained that this problem is not exclusive to potatoes, but is replicated in other essential products such as carrots, onions, lettuce, and squash.

Carrasco emphasized that the difficult financial situation has led producers to seek loans to continue planting, and in some cases, to consider selling part of their land. The spokesperson for the Argentine Fruit and Vegetable Union explained: "They’ve always planted potatoes or onions or whatever, and well, they’re going to continue doing so because that’s how producers are unique, so it’s important for people to know what it costs to import goods and how much they actually get to the source."

Similarly, Omar Carrasco indicated that, in addition to high production costs, producers must face freight costs and taxes, which further reduce their profit margins. For this reason, the organization has issued a nationwide request for the sector to be declared in a state of emergency, with the goal of obtaining some form of government assistance.

Carrasco emphasized the need for "the national government to help a little and look out for the people who are struggling to put food on the table because, directly and indirectly, many families depend on this."