Fernando Oris de Roa, of leading Argentine exporter San Miguel did not waste his opportunity when asked to speak at the Rabobank Global Conference for Fresh Produce, earlier this month, ripping into US and European decision making policies.

'It is time to correct the asymmetries between origins and destinations, including issues related to protectionism, currency parities, financial restrictions, oversupply, unfair practices and other factors that are out of reach for a private company, he said.

'I have not faced an export season without concerns about pending issues being debated in Brussels or in Washington,' he said, 'the outcome of which could potentially have catastrophic consequences for our sales.

'This intangible threat is ever-present and suppliers to these markets are mostly clueless on how to respond pre-emptively. The response usually comes in the form of unstructured future promises to comply with old regulations - leaving them at further risk of future sanctions.

Oris de Roa added: 'Buyers are private companies with the support of their well-deserved trade organisations, national governments and regional supra-governments. Sellers, for the most part are individual enterprises with no local or regional framework, left to compete in the kind of freedom that provides little incentive for co-operation and co-ordination.' He offered his own recommendations for origins such as Argentina, saying they should 'work towards strengthening local, regional and national trade associations, conceive long term national export policies; and create a governmental agency to implement this policy in co-ordination with the national trade association, ministries of agriculture, economic affairs, foreign affairs and any other national or international organisation involved in the export process.'

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