The government has backtracked repeal the rule that forced refrigerators to market meat in pieces not exceeding 32 kilos, which was to come into force on the 15th of this month. So it was arranged today after the meeting of the Councilor for Agriculture with the provinces.
In any case, they indicated that resolution 22/2021 of the Superintendence of Labor Risks (SRT) which establishes the maximum limit at 32 kilos for the manual transport of meat products continues to be in force. mechanical means must be used for parts exceeding that kilogram.
During the meeting between the Government and the Provinces, the Chief of Cabinet of the Ministry of Agriculture, Juan Manuel Fernández Arocenahe highlighted “everyone’s agreement to advance in improvements that put an end to the human transport of bovine vehicles, as a meeting point to go beyond the different criteria between what Agriculture proposes and what is required of the provinces and cold rooms ”.
From various slaughterhouses and refrigerators oriented towards local consumption, and above all from the provinces, seeThey had given up on advancing the measure because they argued that adjusting to the new cut scheme was too expensive for small and medium-sized businesses.
And their critical position on the cut was made known to the Minister of Economy, Sergio Massawhen in the deed held in the city of Buenos Aires by General Las Heras for the announcement of compensation for small and medium-sized producers, several butchers turned to the official to inform him of the impossibility of complying with the standard.
On 21 April 2021, resolution 2/2021 was published in the Official Gazette – which provided for the obligation to sell meat in pieces weighing no more than 32 kilos-. The provision has been postponed so that the entire sector of the supply chain can adapt to the new regulations. The last postponement was in November for a period of 75 days, so it will take effect from January 15 of this month.
One of the sectors that has promoted this change in the meat trade has been the export of refrigerators. “We are sure of it the advantages of quartering are irrefutable. We believe it is the first step towards selling by the slice, which will bring us up to global standards and would place our market as the most important in the world,” said Mario Ravettino, head of the ABC Consortium, a group that brings together exporters of refrigerators.
And he added that only Argentina and Paraguay continue to sell half-beef meat.
“Until Argentina has a meat marketing system adapted to current health needs and to improve consumer prices, we will continue with the current system that it basically promotes informality and large tax, social security and tax evasion in the meat market in the amount of approximately 1,000 million dollars a year,” they said after the latest postponement of the rule.
The feedback from the provinces
The Livestock Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of Córdoba, Catalina Boetto, thanked for having “heard all the voices. We have moved forward with the question of financing and, based on the proposals of Agriculture, we have made an improvement plan for our refrigeration systems. I encourage all the provinces to continue, this is an opportunity to start working and this Council will help us for this. We ask that this Council continue to work to gather consensus and move forward all towards a single state of health.
For his part, the director of breeding and animal health of the ministry of production and industry of Neuquén, Marcos Lauge, said that “we all agree that it is implemented, what we do not agree on is the timing”.
While the undersecretary of Chubut breeding, Verónica Iannini, stressed that “it is important to continue with the issues that have been addressed here as issues that have to do with refrigeration systems. In our province we advance with credits to the sector”.
In this sense, the Government recalled that the credit line of the Crear Program and the FONDAGRO line are in force to anticipate the changes that have been proposed.
“From the Secretariat we continue to bet that the improvement in the refrigeration sector is incremental, in order to be able to make that leap in quality that we have proposed in the treatment and transport from the place where it is slaughtered to what will be consumed, so that there is only one standard health, in pursuit of the health of the population and meat workers,” said the Chief of Staff of the Agricultural Portfolio, Juan Manuel Fernández Arocena.
Source: Clarin
