Yesterday, the general director of the Institute of Agricultural Marketing (IMA), Edwin Cardenas, stated in a press release that food imports "were the result of the neglect on the agricultural sector."
He clarified it was wrong to demonize imports because Panama is not a self-sufficient country and the import of onions, potatoes, maize and rice, were the result of the abandonment experienced by the sector in recent years.
In the document, Cardenas took as an example the case of onions, as the country consumes 50,000 quintals per month and, according to estimates, this month's collection would be between 14,000 and 16,000 quintals, which proves there's a deficit to meet demand and the country needs to import.
The director of the IMA said that, "what has generated great concern is the import of onions from Holland as we hadn't done this up until 2013. Starting that year, the purchase of onions from this European economy has been done complying with Article 4 of the law of the Panamanian Food Safety Authority (AUPSA) ".
Cardenas said that article indicated that all import requests should be addressed in a scientific manner and not thinking about the benefits that one party or the other was going to get. "We must comply with the laws and trade agreements. That's why we are importing onions from Holland."
He also stated that Panama was the only Central American country that buys onions from Holland because it has a law that required them to grant an application for import and to define scientifically if they should be accepted or not. "If science says that product can come from said country of origin, in this case Holland, we have to accept those imports," he stressed.
"AUPSA officials travelled to Holland to check the condition of the onions in laboratories, plants and warehouses and found that the product met all the phytosanitary requirements for marketing them in Panama."
Source: laestrella.com.pa