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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, April 16th 2025 - 21:55 UTC

Agriculture

  • Thursday, March 13th 2025 - 19:25 UTC

    Uruguayan President backtracks on horsetaming restrictions

    The measures had been implemented last month during the last days of Luis Lacalle Pou's government

    Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi suspended for 180 days a regulation passed last month by the previous administration of Luis Lacalle Pou concerning the National Institute of Animal Welfare (INBA) to prioritize animal welfare in horsetaming (jineteadas). The newly-inaugurated head of State said the measure approved last Feb. 10 was too strict to rural sectors, forcing them to cancel several traditional events.

  • Thursday, March 13th 2025 - 08:58 UTC

    Paraguay's Senacsa optimistic after Singaporean audit for meat exports

    In the case of pork and poultry, Singapore “is a bigger market than the Taiwanese one since Singapore imports 100%, they do not produce anything,” Martín explained

    Singapore's Food Agency (SFA) concluded an audit of Paraguay's meat industry, focusing on animal health and food safety controls, in a move to open up to Paraguayan beef, pork, and poultry exports. The evaluation, conducted between March 3 and 11, involved inspections of meat processing plants and meetings with Senacsa (Paraguay's National Animal Health and Quality Service), as well as representatives from the beef, pork, and poultry sectors, including the Paraguayan Meat Chamber and Rural Association.

  • Tuesday, March 11th 2025 - 09:59 UTC

    The FAO Food Price Index in February was up, boosted by sugar, dairy, and vegetable oil demand

    World maize prices continued to rise, but prices fell by 6.8% in February due to ample exportable supplies and weak import demand.

    The benchmark for global food commodity prices rose in February, propelled by increases in sugar, dairy, and vegetable oil prices, according to the new Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) report.

  • Thursday, March 6th 2025 - 10:27 UTC

    Drought will bring produce prices up in Paraguay

    Paraguay's Economy Minister Carlos Fernández forecast a difficult 2025 given the drought affecting agricultural production and thus driving prices upward. In this scenario, he underlined the need for innovative policies and constant review of institutional work as the Government of President Santiago Peña aims to provide necessary resources for health, education, security, and social transfers while improving public spending.

  • Wednesday, March 5th 2025 - 09:12 UTC

    China halts meat imports from Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Mongolia

    The main Argentine plant affected by the measure insisted on the lagging exchange rate between the peso and the US dollar as a key factor for the business to be profitable

    China’s customs authorities have suspended beef imports from seven meatpacking facilities across Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Mongolia as of March 3, 2025. The affected companies include two Argentine exporters (Frigorífico Regional General Las Heras SA and Frio Dock SA), three Brazilian slaughterhouses (Frisa Frigorífico Rio Doce S/A, Bon-Mart Frigorífico Ltda, and JBS S/A), one Uruguayan facility (Frigorífico Sirsil SA), and a Mongolian supplier. No official reason for the measure was provided, though it follows a 2024 record of 2.87 million metric tons of beef imports, which led to an oversupplied market and historically low domestic beef prices in China.

  • Friday, February 28th 2025 - 10:07 UTC

    Paraguay passes EU beef production standards review

    Until last January, the European bloc represented 2% of all overseas sales of these products

    Paraguay's National Animal Health and Quality Service (Senacsa) confirmed this week that the European Union's (EU) Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG Sante) has satisfactorily concluded an audit of the South American country's beef production. Conducted in September 2024, the audit evaluated official controls and certification systems, including checks on pharmacologically active substances, pesticides, and contaminants.

  • Wednesday, February 26th 2025 - 09:37 UTC

    Export of live animals do not violate Brazilian law, federal court ruling

    The export of live animals, cattle and sheep, are a booming business in Mercosur countries.

    A Brazilian Federal Court has ruled that the export of live animals for slaughter does not violate Brazilian law. The unanimous decision of the Federal Court overturned a lower court ruling that had suspended the activity at all Brazilian ports.

  • Monday, February 24th 2025 - 09:22 UTC

    China sells corn seeds to Argentina

    These seeds are known as the “chips of agriculture,” it was explained

    Citing sources in the eastern city of Qingdao, China's news service Xinhua reported Monday that 20 kilograms of corn seeds were shipped to Argentina in late January after being quarantined by the Asian country's customs. These seeds are known as the “chips of agriculture,” it was also explained as Chinese authorities deemed this export as a milestone.

  • Saturday, February 22nd 2025 - 10:49 UTC

    New Uruguayan meat packing plant joins list of companies hit by uncertainty

    Basso's death unleashed a series of obscure deeds that keep sinking Uruguayan meat packing into uncertainty

    A new crisis in a meat packing plant in Uruguay left some 160 workers fearing for their livelihoods after the Paso de los Toros company halted operations, thus adding to the growing list of plants in crisis, which already included Scheneck, Casa Blanca, Lorsinal, and Rondatel, all of them in connection with the fraud scandal involving the financial company Conexión Ganadera, whose director, Gustavo Basso, died in a traffic accident amidst investor claims.

  • Wednesday, February 19th 2025 - 08:42 UTC

    Uruguay on avian flu alert after detection in Argentina

    The outbreak is limited to Tres Isletas, in the Argentine province of Chaco

    Uruguay's Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP) declared a state of health alert due to an outbreak of avian influenza in Tres Isletas, in the Argentine province of Chaco, it was reported Tuesday in Montevideo. The measure seeks to protect public health and national poultry production as the malady poses risks to biodiversity, the poultry sector, and public health. It can cause sudden bird mortality, respiratory and neurological symptoms, hemorrhages, and diarrhea, it was also explained.