On Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies declared the the pear and apple production chains of the provinces of Neuquen and Rio Negro were in an "economic, productive, financial and social emergency for the term of three hundred and sixty-five (365) days."
The initiative had been approved by the Senate on April 25, just before JGM, Marcos Peña, spoke before the legislature. The situation of the producers of pears and apples of the valley is critical, as their crisis has significantly worsened in the last two seasons.
"Small and medium producers continue to disappear every day, especially, the primary producers of our fruit growing sector. This season, we lost more than 230,000 tons of pears. They're lying on the floor or dead on the plants. It's a total waste, as those pears could have been sent to charity canteens, retirement homes, or hospitals," stated legislator Magdalena Odarda (CC, Rio Negro).
Peña spoke about a series of measures taken by the Cambiemos government, referring to their heavy inheritance: "clearly, these more than ten-year-old issues won't be solved in such a short time." The JGM listed extensions for the payment of employers' contributions, total funds for 400 million pesos, 150 million for revolving funds of Agricultural industry and 250 for a Health Fund, among other issues.
The Chief of Ministers, however, considered the measures were palliatives, and stated that the pear and apple sector had a fundamental structural problem that was being discussed at a sectoral table with the governor of the province.
Source: elenfiteuta.com
