Peru: the political situation and its implications for the Peruvian agri-food system
Castillo’s self-coup fuels uncertainty in an already dark outlook for food security
On 7 December, Peru's now former president Castillo, decided to dissolve congress, along with other measures relevant to a state of emergency. The response from Congress was swift and within a couple of hours, the Congress, by a large majority, removed the president from office, accusing him of rebellion.
On his way to the Mexican embassy to request asylum, the president was arrested by the police. The self-coup d'état, probably one of the shortest on record, came to an end as soon as it began. Meanwhile, congress proclaimed the vice-president, Dina Boluarte, the new president of the republic. She is the first woman president of the country 201 years after the proclamation of its independence.
The popular insurgency was not long in coming. Quick mobilisations caused chaos in the different regions of the country, which the congress had already declared in a state of emergency. Two of the most important regions in terms of agro-exports, La Libertad and Ica, were greatly affected. Blockades paralysed several sections of the Panamerican Highway, one of the main roads crossing the country from north to south. This prevented the flow of food to the capital and to the port of Callao, the main port for agro-exports. In Peru’s Andean region, the main supplier of foodstuffs for the domestic market, the blockades prevented the transport of raw materials and foodstuffs.
The situation was already critical long before the self-coup; Peru was facing the biggest food crisis in Latin America, according to the FAO, with half of the population at risk of food shortages. On top of this, there was a nationwide transport strike prior to the self-coup. According to AGAP, the Peruvian Association of Agricultural Producers' Guilds, the stoppages and other disturbances generated during the protests meant a loss of US$ 100 million in agro-exports and an accumulated US$ 200 million so far this year. The shutdown of the logistics in the middle of the working season, caused a loss for more than 150,000 agricultural workers . They have received lower incomes due to the temporary closure for security reasons of the companies they worked.
Ica, a flagship agro-export region, was affected in numerous crops, including asparagus and grapes for export. Potatoes and onions, products for the domestic market, also suffered the consequences of the immobilizations. Shortages and price rises in the Lima markets were the immediate result, and a large part of the harvests were ruined.
Uncertainty still persists, as drought in the Peruvian Andes is threatening a decline in the 2023 season. For her part, the new agriculture minister, Nelly Paredes, warned that the urea fertiliser quota have not been achieved, and that this will have a negative impact on future production. 2023 is expected to be one of the most difficult years for Peruvian agriculture, and the strategy the new minister proposes, will be fundamental to overcome the decline in production and the difficulties in a sector that is highly susceptible to social problems.
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