Carsfe, chaired by Berardo Vignatti, asked the rural associations affiliated with both CRA and the SRA's Consejo Federal to formally express their position on Visec. The request exposes the dispute between CRA and the SRA over representation and traceability.
The dispute between Confederaciones Rurales Argentinas (CRA) and the Sociedad Rural Argentina (SRA) over the implementation of the Visec traceability system has added a new chapter. In a statement, the Confederación de Asociaciones Rurales de Santa Fe (Carsfe) asked the "double-jersey" rural associations —those that are part of CRA's structures and, at the same time, of the SRA's Consejo Federal— to "consider formally expressing before the latter their position and, where applicable, their disagreement with the stance adopted on Visec." The letter is signed by Carsfe president Berardo Vignatti.
The national positions are opposite. CRA has stated its opposition to the system, asserting that it adds paperwork, costs and bureaucratic requirements for producers, and it even denounced discounts on cattle prices by meatpackers. The SRA, by contrast, has expressed a position in favor of its implementation.
In the statement, the Santa Fe association warned that "so far, no public expressions of disagreement have been made by the rural associations that make up the SRA's Consejo Federal, nor is there any knowledge that they have formally raised their differences in that forum." It added: "This situation deepens the institutional divergences between the two organizations."
In the background, a larger tension persists: the dispute between CRA and the SRA over the representation of the grassroots rural associations that answer to both structures. CRA says it speaks on behalf of some 300 grassroots rural associations, but at least 60 of them are also listed as affiliated with the SRA, which claims to have 137 rural associations across 14 districts.
Carsfe also proposed that, if they deem it appropriate, the rural associations send a copy of those submissions so that the confederation can become aware of the steps taken. The proposal does not amount to an explicit demand to leave either of the two organizations, but it seeks to get them to take a position on an issue in which they are represented by leaderships with differing criteria.
The conflict escalated days ago, when Andrés Costamagna, a director of the SRA, launched harsh criticism at CRA over the debate on Visec. CRA responded with a statement demanding a direct answer from SRA president Nicolás Pino: "We address you regarding the public statements made by the Director of that organization, Mr. Andrés Costamagna, during an interview on Canal Rural on today's date, in which, referring to the conduct and institutional position of Confederaciones Rurales Argentinas (CRA), he made remarks that we consider insulting, disparaging and lacking the respect that should prevail in the relationship between institutions that share the trade representation of the agricultural sector." The association added its concern over the statements that attributed to CRA a conduct of "misinforming," "communicating erroneously" and an "extreme denialism," as well as over the considerations about the "irresponsibility of its leaders."
