The President of the Association of Agricultural Producers of the Upper Zone of Mérida State, Andrés Ramírez, denounced how a large part of the carrot crop thas been thrown on the side of the road, and that these carrots are used to feed farm animals of the surrounding areas, since the vegetable cannot be marketed due to unfair prices caused by smuggling from Colombia.
By Jesús Quintero // Correspondent LaPatilla.com
“The price of a crate of this product is in the order of between 8 and 10 dollars in the Pueblo Llano Municipality. This represents a great loss for the producer in the area,” he said.
There is growing concern among the producers themselves, since they depend on the sales of the crops to be able to support their homes, and agriculture is the main economic activity in the area.
Last Friday an important assembly was held to discuss topics related to the regularization of the supply of fuel, the repair of Local 007 roads and the unfair competition of the smuggling mafia.
Ramírez said that the Pueblo Llano Municipality is a purely agricultural town and is able to supply these important items to the national markets. For this reason, they demanded that the authorities apply measures to prevent smuggling.