The Minister of Agriculture Luis Ramon Rodriguez, in response to complaints about the price increases affecting some basic consumer products, said to have escalated in the last few days, said that prices usually go up and down depending on production, as agriculture is cyclical. He assured that the Ministry monitors prices daily.
Nevertheless he said that some traders are claiming that the increases are related to the fact that some items are not part of DR-CAFTA.
He said that the reality was – especially with chickens and eggs, which have been subject to the greatest increases – that the heat and the increase in the cost of inputs such as soya, corn and fat has led to this price increase.
He said that there has been a growth in exports of non-traditional products like bananas, cocoa, sugar, tobacco, fruit and vegetables, adding that he hoped that by the end of the year the figure would reach US$1.4 billion, around US$200 million more than 2012.
He said that the Dominican Republic should increase its production capacity although at the moment it produces 80% of the items it consumes.
www.diariolibre.com/destacada/2013/10/07/i405371_ministro-agricultura-aoeson-normales-alzas-precios-los-productosa.html