The indefinite work stoppage of heavy cargo carriers puts at risk the export of thousands of tons of mango and organic bananas that must leave through the port of Paita.
Without transport service or access to the port, mango exporters who were going to make shipments on Monday and Tuesday have had to refrigerate their product, which gives them a short time before they lose it.
In the case of bananas, the fruit remains in the plantations. It is not being harvested because nobody will move it.
"Ships arrived to the port on Monday and Tuesday to take away the fruit but it was impossible to load them. The fruit runs the risk of spoiling. "The fruit is refrigerated in the packing plants or detained at the port and it is already in an advanced stage of maturation," said Juan Carlos Rivera, the manager of the Peruvian Association of Producers and Exporters of Mango (APEM).
The specialist added that if this fruit for export wasn't sent, "it would no longer be useful."
"If it thaws, it spoils. It could be processed but at a very low price or it would have to be discarded," he added.
Thousands
Last week some 8,000 tons of mangoes were shipped through the port of Paita in 400 containers. This means the country wouldn't export more than 1,000 tons of mango per day.
Rivera said that they still can't calculate losses, but that exporters and farmers would lose millions. "They are committing serious damage to agricultural exports," he said.
Organic banana
Meanwhile, organic banana producers know how much they are losing. "We lose 500 thousand dollars a day. In addition, we face a breach of contracts that we have fought hard to get this year. We have not made any shipments in three days," said Marcia Herrera, the head of the banana technical table.
Each week, the sector ships 200 to 220 containers (17 TN each), which amount to more than US $ 3 million.
The fruit remains in the plantations and with the passage of days it will no longer be used for export, she said. "We need a quick solution to the strike because each passing day we have heavy losses. They should at least let us export the product for a few hours each day," she added.
Leader; "100% strike"
The representative in Piura of the Regional Union of Transporters of heavy cargo (URT), Rolando Periche, assured that starting today there would be a 100% strike.
To date, he said, the Executive has given no answer to their demands regarding the reduction of toll prices and the exemption of fuel to the payment of the Selective Consumption Tax (ISC). "This does have a solution (a rise in tolls) as it is a detriment to the State. We ask for the annulment of concession contracts," he added.
Source: etiempo.pe
