TRADE AND MARKET I NG Processing industry should open up the potato sector of Argentina The total South American market for chips is currently 500,000 tons. The biggest market is Brazil, where over 200 million people each eat 1.3 kilos of chips every year. At this moment, Hernández grows 1,000 hectares of consumption potatoes for Pepsico and Farm Frites and 100 hectares of seed potatoes. After harvesting, his seed is stored in boxes. A few weeks before the start of the planting season, he divides his planting stock into three sizes. He does this to get a better division of stems across the ridge. Magnoni is a unique example for other growers in Argentina. El Parque Papas grows its seed in the area around Tres Arroyos and De la Garma. The government has stipulated that growers are only allowed to cultivate seed and not consumption potatoes for this 500,000 hectare area. The Argentinian growers plant 2,000 hectares here annually most of which is sold within Argentina itself. Another important cultivation area for seed potatoes is around the town of Malargüe in the Mendoze area. Around 1,300 hectares are cultivated here every year. The seed here is grown from mini tubers. Some growers grow seed themselves, others, such as Hernández, buy their seed from specialised companies such as Diagnostico Vegetales in Mar del Plata. After three generations, the company sells the material as user seed. SENASE compares with the Dutch General Inspection Service for Agricultural Seed and Seed Potatoes (NAK) In the past, it was also possible to import seed, but after the discovery of potato AGRICULTURAL POLICY IN ARGENTINA: A NEW PERIOD HAS STARTED During the closing session of the GITAHpapa project in Mar del Plata, which took place last year, the Dutch Agriculture Councillor Bart Vrolijk dwelled on the effects of the election of the new President Mauricio Macri. He emphasised that there are enormous improvements in the pipeline. In his view, this opens up opportunities for Dutch agricultural businesses. He expects that agricultural production will increase considerably and import restrictions will be reduced. According to Vrolijk, Macri reckons that the agricultural sector is one of the most important accelerators of the Argentinian economy. An increase in the world’s population opens up opportunities for Argentina. With fertile soil, water and sun, the country has competitive advantages for efficient agriculture production in order to meet the growing demand for food. It´s Macri´s ambition to double the production of agricultural produce in Argentina in the coming years, to guarantee internal supplies and to increase export, thus promoting the advancement of economic growth in the rural areas. The common theme throughout his policy proposals is less government interference in the production and international trade of agricultural products, machinery, inputs etc. How this all will work out will become clear in the coming period. ´But all the signals are showing a green light. ´It´s Macri´s ambition to double the production of agricultural produce in Argentina in the coming years´, Agricultural Counsellor Bart Vrolijk, with checked shirt, explains to the Dutch GITAHpapa participants. After a decade in which the agricultural sector was continuously at loggerheads with the Argentinian government, the sector is now heaving sighs of relief. A new period has arrived´, Vrolijk emphasises. 16 Potato World 2016 • number 4 Pagina 15
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