The shortage of seeds and agricultural supplies results in less production and more unemployment. The state of Lara is a living example of this, as it has some 20,000 hectares of potatoes, vegetables, and spices that were left uncultivated.
The situation of the domestic agricultural sector is going from bad to worse, as can be seen in Lara. Jose Ernesto Colmenarez, who is part of the State's Potato and Vegetable Council said it was a shame that the producers from Lara, Trujillo, Merida, and Tachira were not delivered the seeds from Canada that they were promised.
"70% of the farmers in Lara had prepared their land and 20 people are employed per hectare. In Andrés Eloy Blanco, 2,500 hectares of potatoes were not planted as well as 1,500 hectares of various items such as cabbage, lettuce, and spices. In Moran, the most productive municipality, producers didn't cultivate 3,000 hectares of potatoes and an equal number of hectares of vegetables. In Crespo, there are 5,000 hectares of potato for the industry and spices that could not be planted. In Rio Claro, in Iribarren, 1,000 hectares were not planted and in Jimenez, in the upper area of the parish of Diego de Lozada, San Miguel, Cubiro, Paso Real, nearly 4,000 hectares of vegetables were not cultivated. "This means there will be a lower production and more unemployment in the rural area," Colmenarez said.
He also stated that there used to be more than 2,000 producers in Andres Eloy Blanco and that there were currently just 400 active producers there. "We've been going through a rough time since 2009, when the private enterprise started being attacked with the expropriation of Agroisleña, among other companies. "The system implemented by Agropatria allows them to institutionalize contraband. Agropatria does not have all the required inputs, so if a producer needs fungicides for four hectares they will only sell him for one hectare. As a result, people resort to the black market. The same thing happens with the seeds. We are depending on contraband, which has become generally widespread. There is no machinery ".
Source: elfinformador.com.ve