Dairy industry asks the Government to import Uruguayan milk quota

Esteio (RS)-the productive chain of the dairy sector claimed the federal Government negotiating quotas to limit the entry of Uruguay''s milk powder in the Brazilian market.
The intent is to prevent unfair competition with the Brazilian product, which is more expensive than the imported, explained yesterday, leaders of the Union of dairy Industries of Rio Grande do Sul (Sindilat/RS), during the 40th Edition of the international exhibition of Animals, machinery and Implements and agricultural products (Expointer), in Esteio (RS).
"We are not against the entry of Uruguayan product in Brazil, we are a country that needs to import, but the question is how this product enters the Country," says the President of Sindilat, Alexander war.
The intent of Sindilat is to be negotiated a quota so as to what is already in place with Argentina, which can send up to 5000 tons for Brazil per month.
The limit to be established is still being calculated, but must represent the average amount of product that entered the Brazil coming from Uruguay for the last three years, same system used to define the dimension.
According to the Executive Director of the entity, Darlan Palharini, the lack of a negotiation with the Uruguay can also affect the business with Argentina. "If the Brazil doesn''t establish a quota with the Uruguay, Argentina will want to embark the product freely for Brazil".
According to them, the Minister of agriculture, Blairo Maggi, I undertook to assess the demand and indicated its intention to take the product from the list of common external tariff (TEC), which would cause the product was taxed at 28%.
Between January and July, 17900 tons of the product were imported from Uruguay, a fall of 40.6 percent over the same range as last year, "despite the reduction of the import, the product entered more competitive in the marketplace than the Brazilian", justifies war. While the pound Brazilian milk powder cost, on average, R $14, the Uruguayan product is acquired by R $10.50.
From January to July, the total Brazilian imports of milk powder totaling 56600 tons of powdered milk, 20% drop compared to the same period last year.
Palharini explains that much of the Uruguayan product comes to Brazil via Uruguay Conaprole cooperative, which focuses on the center of the country. "The minority of industries matter Uruguayan milk powder, still, we have to defend the interests of the industry as a whole", he argues.
Another factor that worries producers is the mismatch between the brazilian production, which grew 4% from January to July over a year earlier, and consumption, which retreated 4.5 percent in the country, generating a surplus of product on the market.
Government procurement
The sector also claimed carrying out government procurement to 50000 tons of Brazilian milk powder being 20000 tons only in Rio Grande do Sul. The State is the second largest producer of milk, after Minas Gerais.
For this, however, the produtiv the chain asks the Government reset the value paid for the product in the domestic market, R $11.80 per kilo for R $14. "This is crucial for us to have the same condition of competitiveness," says Guerra.
"Without this adjustment, the value would be a price to the producer of R $0.80 per litre, which is impossible," says Palharini.
War recognizes that to be more competitive, Brazil still needs to produce more so you can become an exporter and importer of the product no. The average brazilian production is 20000 litres to 30000 litres per property per year. In Rio Grande do Sul, the average is 50000 litres per year. In Uruguay, the average production per property is 500,000 litres per year.
"We have this gap and we need to do the homework. The issue will not be solved without us to do our part, "says the President of the Sindilat.