April 7, 2008

Argentina slowing corn and beef exports with customs barriers

Argentine customs officials have started to demand additional documentation before clearing corn exports, slowing shipments as grain transport resumes after a 21-day farm strike that blocked exports, the corn and sorghum growers association, Maizar, said in a press release Friday (April 4, 2008). 

The government sent out a notice of the new requirements Wednesday and the new regulations are complicating corn exports, Maizar said.

The impediments to corn exports follow similar bureaucratic snags that have blocked beef exports.

With meat still in short supply at local butchers and supermarkets due to the farm strike that ended Wednesday, the government is using procedural red tape to prevent any beef exports from leaving port.

On Tuesday, customs officials refused to issue export permits and ordered beef already loaded for shipment to be brought back to shore. Later in the day, customs sent exporters a notice indicating that no beef shipments would be allowed until exporters provided extensive additional documentation.

"They are asking for an incredible amount of documentation simply to delay shipments," said an executive at a leading beef exporter.

As of April 4, Argentina had sold 8.98 million metric tonnes of 2007-08 corn, up from 8.16 million tonnes a week earlier, the Agriculture Secretariat said Friday. But selling it and actually shipping it is another thing and farmers are threatening to go on strike again in one month if negotiations with the government over a new grain export tax structure break down.

Exporters have a very small window in which to ship the grain and customs delays will greatly complicate logistics.

Argentina will have about 14 million tonnes of corn to export this season, Maizar said.