RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – After Argentina announced problems in wheat planting due to the drought, experts assured that Chile would be affected in terms of food security.
Chile consumes a total of 2.4 million tons of wheat annually, 45% of which is of national origin, mainly concentrated in La Araucanía.
However, 1.2 million tons are imported from Argentina, Canada, and the USA.
According to the Office of Agricultural Studies and Policies (Odepa), in 2015, the country produced 1.5 million tons of wheat, which in the 2020-2021 seasons decreased to 1.2 million.
This drop is due to the lack of security in the Araucanía area, according to Juan Pablo Subercaseaux, professor at the Agronomy Faculty of the Catholic University.
The former Minister of Agriculture, Antonio Walker, stated that the problem stems from the neighboring country and the Russia-Ukraine war.
In this sense, Walker warned that food security would be affected.
He also added that the current Ministry of Agriculture has not been able to face this crisis, so he proposed the creation of an inter-ministerial committee to see how to face food security in the country.