Agriculture and food in Argentina

Agriculture in Argentina – between corn and soy

Agriculture land in Argentina

Argentina has a longstanding tradition as one of the world’s largest agricultural producers.The country has a total area of 2,780,400 sq km of which arable land consists 14,3 %. Country has the fourth-largest population in Latin America (44.5 million) of which 3.6 millions of people lived in rural areas (according to 2018 statistics). The climate is mostly temperate, with variations between regions. The country has an Antarctic climate in the south and a more tropical jungle climate in its northern parts.

Argentina can be divided into four major regions:

• the sub-Andean region - the rugged Andes along the western border with arid basins, glacial mountains and the Lake District. This region consists of a series of irrigated enclaves where sugarcane, citrus fruits (in the North) and grapes (central) are grown.
• the Chaco plain - fertile lowland north with subtropical rainforests and cotton farms.
• the central Pampas - flat, fertile plains (a mix of humid and semi-arid areas) which provide much of Argentina's agriculture including raising of sheep and cattle, and wheat, corn, soybean and fodder crops.
- Patagonian plateau - a combination of low, arid, pastoral steppes and glacial regions.

In 2020, the share of agriculture in Argentina's gross domestic product was 6.84%. It is among the world’s leading food exporters, with large-scale agricultural and livestock industries. Over 80% of the production in the country takes place in humid Pampas.

In the rural areas of Argentina, farming and ranching continues to be a way of life but many smaller farmers have already gone out of business and, without subsidies, others struggle to survive. Although mechanization is now more common, many farmers still use no chemical products and livestock continue to roam freely on the wide, rich plains of the Pampas. As a result, Argentina is the world's third largest producer of organic products, mostly plant products. These include cereals, fruits, vegetables, oils, aromatic herbs, sugar, juices and wines although increasing numbers of livestock now have certified organic status. 90% of all organic products are exported, mainly to the EU but with growing demand from the US.

Seventy-five percent of Argentina’s farms are family farms. They account for 18 percent of the country’s agricultural land and produce 27 percent of total agricultural output.

The remaining farm units (excluding special cases) are grouped under ‘non-family farms’ and make up 23 percent of all farms. They account for 79 percent of Argentina’s agricultural land and generate 72 percent of the country’s agricultural production in value terms. However, in contrast to the positive move towards organic agriculture, there is increasing concern over the number of farmers growing GM-soya.

Crop production in Argentina

Soya and corn production

Soya and corn are two major ceral products of Argentina. In 2020, for the first time in 23 years, corn production volume surpassed soy. Corn production 2019/20 reached 42 million tons. The main destination is exports (67%), while 25% goes to animal consumption and 8% to milling and ethanol. There are 250,881 farms in the country, of which 77,691 with corn and sorghum. Corn is the key link in meat and dairy chains. Taking into account the complete chains, it can be said that corn means 16% of Argentina's exports and 4.5% of the country’s GDP. Soybean is the second most important crop for the Argentine agriculture. The surface cultivated with soy represents around 53 % of the cultivated area in Argentina. Of this, only about 2 % is consumed nationally, while the rest is exported in various forms. Argentina is a lead exporter of soy oil, and uses it to produce and export biodiesel. Argentina agriculture adapted well to soybean production because it was profitable, grew well in the Pampas, and has been an excellent rotational crop to corn and wheat. The impact of GM seed also dramatically reduced the input costs and increased the production value of soybean products.

Wheat production

Wheat production which reached an all-time high of almost 18mmt in 2016–17, is centred mostly in three provinces — Córdoba, Santa Fe and Buenos Aires. All these main production regions are close to Gran Rosario ports or the southern port of Bahia Blanca. Hence, the trucking distance to port for much of Argentina’s wheat production is not far, often less than 250km. Wheat milling is an important value-adding component of the Argentinian wheat industry. A tonne of flour converted into baked goods multiplies its value around eightfold.

Other plants

Agriculture and agro-industry in Argentina focus also on the production of sugar, fruit, wine, tea, tobacco, and cotton. Cotton is concentrated in Chaco Province. Sunflower seed oil is a major industrial plant product. Tobacco is raised in several northern provinces, especially Misiones.

Fruit growing has developed rapidly since the end of World War II. Main fruit products are: apples, oranges, lemons and limes, peaches and nectarines, grapefruit, 230,000.

The most important vegetables are onions, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes. With the rising health consciousness, there is also an increasing consumption trend towards varieties of off-season vegetables, like potatoes, There is a recent trend of growing consumption, especially among the middle-income group inLatin America. Therefore, the fruits and vegetable market is anticipated to grow in the years to come, which in turn will drive the overall demand for agriculture in the country.

Exports of aromatic and medicinal plants are increasing. Argentina's also exports processed organic products such as olive oil, sugar, concentrated juices, honey and wine. The province of Mendoza is the center for the nation's vineyards. Argentina is one of the world's leading producers of wine. Argentina is one of the greatest food-producing and food-exporting countries of the world. Most of the agricultural commodities produced in Argentina are internationally traded, and the country is a net exporter in major beef, and milk markets. The central region of Argentina, formed by the Provinces of Córdoba, Santa Fe and Entre Ríos, concentrates the largest number of producers of poultry and pig meat. This region concentrates 65% of the dairy base, 81% of bioethanol, 44% of the pig chain and 30% of bovine production. Entre Ríos province produces more than 50% of the country's poultry meat.The province of Córdoba produces 38% of the cereal (21 million tons), followed by Buenos Aires (25%) and Santa Fe (15%).

Livestock in Argentina

With its large territory and the accessibility to cheap feed from the local soy production, Argentina is an ideal location for the production of poultry and pork. However, in both subsectors there is a continuous focus on efficiency-driven solutions that can decrease production costs. Poultry production growth in Argentina is surpassing beef and pork output. Its price competitiveness and healthier image compared with beef is contributing to the robust demand. Annual local consumption of chicken has doubled in less than 10 years.

The Argentine dairy sector continues experiencing a positive growth. Growth in production combined with the increasing demand for dairy products all over the world, affects this sector into expanding local production capacity.

Forest industry in Argentina

Despite not been among the main worldwide forest producers, Argentina has about 33,000,000 hectares of native forest and 1,128,411 hectares of planted forest. Of the 570 species of trees sold in international commerce, Argentina possesses 370, but of these it exploits only about a dozen species. The main cultivated species in terms of the percentage of Argentinian wood production are pines, mainly Pinus elliottii and Pinus taeda but also Araucaria angustifolia, Pinus ponderosa.

Pseudotzuga menziesii, about 64% of the total wood production; Eucalyptus about 23% of the wood production, mainly Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus saligna but also Eucalyptus camandulensis, In the Río Paraná Delta, the woods currently exploited are softwoods, such as the elm and willow, used in the cellulose and container industries; in the Gran Chaco, white quebracho, used as a fuel and in the refining of coal, and red quebracho, from which tannin is extracted; in Misiones Province, several varieties, including cedar for furniture manufacturing; in the Salta-Tucumán region, cedar and oak. Argentina possesses four-fifths of the world's supply of red quebracho, which contains 21% tannin. this wood. Among the twenty-four Argentinian administrative divisions (so- called provinces), the three main provinces of the NEA region, i.e., Misiones, Corrientes and Entre Ríos, concentrate almost the 78% of the forest plantations of the country.

Fishing industry in Argentina

Argentina is characterized for being a coastal country with a large continental shelf and an extensive marine coast over the South Atlantic Ocean, with important fishing resources of great accessibility. It has a significant industrial extraction and processing structure, with a strong dependence on the external market for what concerns the commercialization of its fishing products.

In 2018, Argentina produced 0.8 million tonnes of fish (including molluscs and crustaceans), with a value of USD 2834.6 million. 1% of this value came from aquaculture and 99% from fisheries (that is, the capture of wild resources). n 2018, the fleet consisted of 903 powered vessels. Small-scale vessels, those below 12 meters in length, accounted for 33% of the total number of vessel. The total gross tonnage of the Argentinian fleet in 2018 was 178679 tonnes.

The fish and mare species caught in Argentina are as follows:

• Merluza / Argentine hake (Merluccius hubbsi)
• Polaca / Southern blue whiting (Micromesistius australis)
• Corvina rubia / Croaker (Micropogonias furnieri))
• Pescadilla de red / Striped weakfish (Cynoscion guatucupa)
• Besugo / Red porgy (Pagrus pagrus)
• Merluza negra / Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides)
• Merluza austral / Southern hake (Merluccius australis).
• Abadejo / Ling, Kinglip or Pink suskeel (Genypterus blacodes)
• Gatuzo / Patagonian smoothound (Mustelus schmitti)
• Merluza negra / Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides)
• Castaneta or Papamoscas / Castaneta or Hawkfish (Cheilodactylus bergui)
• Bacalao criollo or Bacalao austral / Patagonian cod or Red cod (Salilota australis)
• Vieira Patagonica / Patagonian scallop (Zygochlamys patagonica)
• Langostino / Argentine red shrimp (Pleoticus muelleri)
• Calamar / Argentine short-fin squid (Illex argentinus)

The continental fishing activity is artisanal and mainly done in the hydrographic Bay of del Río de la Plata and in the lagoon areas.

The greatest activity takes place in the rivers Paraná, Uruguay, Paraguay and de la Plata, being the main landing harbours: Rosario, Victoria, Diamante, Santa Fe, Corrientes, and Berisso.

The most important species exploited in the fluvial zones are the allis shad, the surubí, the patí, the sand smelt, the armado and the bogue, among others, while in the lakes area the species caught is the sand smelt.

The development level of the aquaculture in Argentina is low. Most of the products are destined to the internal market, mainly in the areas close to the production zone, part of them reaching the "bonaerense" market and other important urban centers of the country.