The prices of products such as carrots, beets, junca and bighead onions, broccoli, and green beans in pods increased by more than 10% driven by a lower supply from key regions such as Cundinamarca, Antioquia, Boyacá, and Nariño. In contrast, products such as cucumber, chocolo (corn), tomatoes, and green beans registered decreases, in some cases also greater than 10%.

In the group of fresh fruits, the price falls in mandarins, lemons, guava, oranges, pineapples, avocados, apples, soursops (guanabana), and bananas stood out. However, some tropical fruits such as tree tomatoes (tomatos de arból), mangoes, and passion fruit showed considerable increases, as did grapes, melons, and dragon fruits (pitaya).

“These price fluctuations respond to both climatic conditions and natural production cycles, which forces us to continue strengthening agricultural planning with data. We continue to advance in tools to anticipate these variations and better guide production and marketing in the territories,” said Dora Inés Rey, director of the UPRA.

In tubers, decreases were recorded in the native and black potato varieties, as well as in the arracacha. However, products such as bananas, yams, and cassava reported moderate increases, in line with their seasonal behavior. In meat, the prices of several cuts of beef, fish, and chicken increased slightly, while Dora Inés Rey presented a generalized, although moderate, reduction.

The behavior of egg prices was on the rise in all categories, and the same happened with artisanal cheeses. In grains and cereals, decreases were observed in products such as yellow corn and imported lentils, while beans such as red cargo and radical increased their price. Finally, among processed foods, increases were recorded in sugar, coffee, chocolates, and refined oils; while decreases were observed in flours, pastes, and mixed vegetable oils.

Pork. Photo credit: ludiarin from Pixabay.

In addition to the US Undersecretary of Commerce, representatives from Colombia’s Ministry of Agriculture, ProColombia, and the Colombian Embassy participated in the meeting, which had the stated goal of increasing Colombia’s exports and diversifying the range of products that can be exported, taking advantage of the binational free-trade agreement between Colombia and The United States.

In the first half of this year, Colombia exported $6.85 billion USD worth of products, or 29% of the country’s entire exports, making the US Colombia’s most important trading partner. Of this total, $2.5 billion were exports other than mining or petroleum, increasing diversified trade by 1.75% over the same period last year.

In 2018, US direct investment in Colombia reached $2.478 billion USD, and in the first quarter of this year, $596.2 million USD. Telecommunications, finance and tourism received most of the US investors’ attention during that quarter.

Photo courtesy MinTIC