Argentine grain exports halted by strike over vaccines

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Argentine grain exports were halted on Wednesday due to a strike by port workers demanding the inclusion of shipping crew in the priority group for Covid-19 vaccination.

Dock workers who prepare ships to sail were among those on strike, along with tugboat captains and sailors who guide cargo ships to and from port, according to the joint statement.

“All shipments are stopped,” said Guillermo Wade, manager of the Chamber of Port and Maritime Activities (CAPyM).

“At least seven ships were loaded yesterday (Tuesday) in Rosario and were ready to set sail, but the unions prevented the unberthing process,” he said.

Wade added that it will be difficult for the ships to set sail, even after the strike ends, due to the dropping level of the Paraná River.

“These seven ships, docked in the ports of Timbues, San Martín and San Lorenzo, are now too heavy to sail, given the river’s decreasing depth,” he explained.

The 48-hour measure, announced by the sector’s unions that ends on Thursday afternoon, interrupted activity in the port center of Rosario, from where some 80% of Argentina’s agricultural products are shipped.

In the statement, workers demanded “prevention protocols and medical care in all of the country’s ports.” The strike is expected to run for 48 hours.

“In just seven days, we have lost four colleagues, which shows a high level of infections within different activities,” they added.

Argentina is the world’s largest exporter of soybean oil and meal, the third largest for corn, and a major supplier of wheat.

Argentina registered a daily record of Covid-19 infections and deaths on Tuesday, due to a fierce second wave of the pandemic placing the South American country among the five with the highest daily records in the world.