like a new idea of the Federal governmentwhich attacks the producers, the agriculture commercial and food self-sufficiency, this is how the Decree that imposes a 35% tariff at imports of ammonium sulphate published on May 8 of this year.
The Decree modifies the Tariff of the Law of General Import and Export Taxes, published on April 22, 2024 and tariff sections 7601.10.02 and 7601.20.02 of the Tariff of the Law of General Import and Export Taxes.
The Federal Government’s justification is that from 2019 to 2023, the imports of ammonium sulphate They went from 22% to 51% of national consumption, which has displaced the national fertilizer industry.
He ammonium sulphate is one of the most economical nitrogen fertilizers and more used for the producersparticularly in the corn, wheat, rice, sugar cane, potatoes, cotton, citrus fruits and vegetables.
The first 4 crops are products of food security and sovereignty, according to articles 178 and 179 of the Sustainable Rural Development Law.
To measure the impact of the Decree, it must be said that 6.5 million tons of fertilizers are consumed nationally, of which 70% is imported, while the national industry supplies only 30%. And of the total imported, ammonium sulfate represents 9.6%.
So, in a country with a total deficit of fertilizers, imposing a 35% tariff on imports of ammonium sulfate will only cause an increase in the price of fertilizers and, therefore, will increase production costs and reduce the low profitability of the producers. producers, which at the end of the chain will increase food prices for the 130 million Mexicans.
“The Federal Government officials are geniuses,” note the sarcasm.
As a fact, in April 2024, the annual inflation of the “fruits and vegetables” item was 18.57%, compared to the general inflation of 4.65%, that is, food prices are increasing 4 times faster than the rest of the merchandise.
So we should ask ourselves, what level of food inflation are we going to achieve with this new 35% tariff on ammonium sulfate?
This Decree adds to multiple occurrences of the Federal Government, such as the terrible marketing strategy for Sinaloa corn, where producers only aspire to $5,400 per ton, which is insufficient to cover production costs.
And it adds to the elimination of the National Development Fund and ASERCA, who was responsible for the marketing of basic grains.
As well as the elimination of more than 30 rural support programs and the budget of 74,110 million pesos for the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER) for 2024, which is practically the same budget that SAGARPA had in 2018. (72,125 million pesos), without considering that during these 5 years and 5 months, the budget has lost 32% of its value due to accumulated inflation.
The result of these occurrences is that, instead of advancing in food self-sufficiency, today Mexico is importing 82% of the rice it consumes, 72% of the yellow corn, 63% of the bread-making wheat and 32% of the beans.
Therefore, I ask you, dear reader: who will benefit from the 35% tariff on the import of ammonium sulfate, the producers, the consumers or a few businessmen?
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