Juan Carlos Ordóñez, the Vice Minister of Agriculture, reported that Honduras reached that figure by the reopening of the U.S. market, and the exports to Mexico and the Central American markets, such as El Salvador.
According to Ordóñez, projections for 2011 and 2012 are positive, due in part to the the negotiation of a trade agreement with the European Union, where Honduras achieved an export quota of 2,500 tons of meat.
Furthermore, in the year just ending, Honduras stopped importing 30 percent of the meat for consumption, resulting in a savings of six million dollars “that remained in the country,” he said.
The meat industry has an economic and social impact on Honduras. Of the 100,000 farmers, 90 percent are small operations, which generates lots of jobs. It is similar to coffee production, where there is participation by many producers on a small scale, the official explained.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, meat production is responsible for providing roughly 300 thousand jobs to Hondurans.
One Response to "SAG Outlook Good for the New Year"
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Here we go again, hopefully thinking that saying things nicelly is going to make matters better.
Nobody dares to declare the outrage for what it is.
The meat packing companies in Honduras do so much harm to the small producers that is almost impossible for them to make a profit.
There is no real studies to unmask the criminal behaviour of the ‘Beef Barons”.
The do no sell the meat at a loss, not by a far shot, it is simply their greed and their disregard for their fellow honurans that drive them to pay so little to the actual producer.
And “having to import less meat”, what kind of a dirty joke is that, to be happy about something like that is like laughing in the face of the small cattle ranchers.
Honduras needs to improve the way it lives its every day life.
It is up to our people to make this happen.