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If the ruling is passed in the plenary session that only allows entry into the country of transgenic corn broken, will further open the dispute before the T-MEC and will put food security at risk, warned the Agricultural Markets Consulting Group (GCMA).
Juan Carlos Anaya, president of the agri-food consultancysaid that limiting entry into the country only to the type of cracked corn grain as they are proposing in Congress, will be lost competitiveness in the industry.
He noted that in 2024 and 2025 it is estimated that imports will represent the 50.5% of national consumption and the reality is that this initiative has no basis. In an interview with this newspaper, the specialist in rural foods, indicated that “the deputies are making decisions without having a technical consultation or a scientific study, which is a great irresponsibility.”
Anaya called on the new government that is about to start and the new Agriculture officials to eliminate this project that is nothing more than a mere occurrence,
He assured that if this proposal goes ahead it can be discussed in the Congress, Producers and the industry will lose about 345 million dollars next year, nearly 6.5 billion pesos.
He explained that after the decree prohibiting the planting of genetically modified corn, the plan is now to open the entry only to cracked corn.
It should be noted that cracked corn is literally the broken grain and has nothing to do with shelled corn. It is in the article “Fifth Transitory”, added to the legislation on water, food and environmental protection, which talks about allowing the entry of genetically modified corn in its cracked corn form, which is not intended for human consumption.
For the consulting firm specializing in the grain market, allowing the importation of cracked corn, under the premise that it is not a whole grain, could compromise our food and economic security. national market.
He added that the additional regulations included in the reform indicate that the cracked corn modality may be exempted under certain risk assessment conditions, but this could open the door to interpretations. flexible and malicious.
In addition to the fact that this reform could have significant consequences such as having higher costs for breaking corn.
“Importers will face additional costs (breaking, maneuvers, losses, among others), which could translate into higher prices for the industrial sector and consumers who depend on the corn”.
Juan Carlos Anaya He stressed that grain fragmentation makes quality control difficult, putting the country’s food security at risk.
Furthermore, “there is a high risk that the cracking process will be simulated by importing corn that does not comply with regulations, but is presented as such.”
It was even claimed that cracked corn is more susceptible to fungal contamination and may result in additional costs for safety testing.
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2024-08-25 05:38:35