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Argentine grain theft: A new fundamental

By Charlie Devereux and Pablo Gonzalez, Bloomberg

August 29, 2014 • Reprints

The 200 pesos ($24) that truck driver Hector Jofre usually carries to bribe gang members or shanty dwellers for access to Argentina’s biggest grain port did no good one night in April.

Six youths in a pickup climbed on the back of the rig when Jofre slowed near a railroad track. They opened hatches that spilled 10 metric tons of corn onto 100 meters of road and swept up as much as they could. Jofre says it took three more deliveries without pay to compensate his employer for the loss.

“It used to happen once a month,” said Jofre, 31. “Now it’s every day. Truckers are getting spooked.”

Truck drivers in Argentina, the world’s third-largest exporter of corn and soybeans, say theft and extortion are on the rise at the main port, Rosario. While police have pledged to step up security, escalating crime has boosted shipping fees and compounded delays at terminals, threatening the country’s biggest source of dollar income at a time when Argentina’s debt crisis has sent central bank reserves near an eight-year low.

As grain supplies arrive from a harvest that is almost complete, thieves are targeting cargo, fuel and personal belongings on trucks headed into Rosario, where increasing drug trafficking led to a doubling of the murder rate in three years. The river city handles 80% of agricultural exports, and is known as Argentina’s Chicago for its link with commodities.

Jeopardizing Profit

While data on agricultural crime isn’t available, police and port authorities interviewed by Bloomberg News say incidents are on the rise, affecting deliveries to grain handlers including Cargill Inc. and Archer-Daniels Midland Co. Even railway owner Belgrano Cargas & Logistica SA added security after convoys were looted in the province of Santa Fe, which includes Rosario.

“The federal and provincial governments need to get a grip on the situation,” said Ernesto Ambrosetti, chief economist at the Rural Society, the largest farming group. “It isn’t just jeopardizing public safety, but also the ability of the nation’s agricultural industry to operate profitably.”

Government and police officials pledged to step up security near Rosario’s 28 export terminals after meeting with drivers on Aug. 6, the Federation of Argentine Truck Drivers, which represents about 6,000 drivers, said in a statement. After receiving the assurances, the union said it canceled a planned strike to protest the crime wave.

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About the Author

Copyright 2014 Bloomberg. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Related Terms
Bloomberg 5254Corn 753Illinois 599Chicago Board of Trade 574Supreme Court 98Argentina 34Cargill Inc. 27U.S. court 20Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner 10Santa Fe 6rail operator 3Jorge Capitanich 3Jackie Anderson 3telephone calls seeking comment 2Guillermo Wade 2Rural Society 1Archer-Daniels Midland Co. 1Belgrano Cargas & Logistica SA 1Belgrano 1sent central bank reserves 1Interior & Transport Ministry 1National University of Rosario 1Federation of Argentine Truck Drivers 1Argentine Federal Police 1provincial police office in Rosario 1Association of Grain Exporters 1Cantero 1Gonzalo Sanchez Sorondo 1Damian Umansky 1Alfredo Sese 1Massimo Macchiavello 1Victor Camargo 1Fernando Sostre 1Fernandez de Kirchner 1Enrique Font 1Antonio Bonfatti 1Hector Jofre 1Ernesto Ambrosetti 1Carolina Herrera 1Mark Klein 1Santa Fe 1

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