Argentina

 

A successful and

unprecedented Conference

 

As the Conference came to an end, Sirel sought the opinion

of some of the event's leading participants.

 

Héctor Ponce

ATILRA General Secretary


The enormous recognition and praise we received reaffirms our commitment

 

“We feel serenely happy, and this feeling is motivated by the feedback we've received from the various organizations that visited us. We're delighted that they were so pleased they felt they had to personally express their satisfaction to us. And they weren't just pleased with how they were received and treated and by how well organized the Conference was; they were impressed by the quality of the event.

 

This is largely due to the fact that anyone wishing to speak at the Conference was allowed to express themselves freely, and also to the participation of the various players involved in the dairy industry. For the first time ever, a meeting of dairy workers, represented by our labor organizations, gathered to listen to the views of industrial operators, dairy farmers and the government, which have given us their perspective on the future of the dairy sector in this part of the world.

 

We're also very grateful to Ron Oswald, general secretary of the IUF, and to Gerardo Iglesias, head of the IUF's Latin American Regional Office, for believing that we could successfully organize this Conference.

 

The approval of the proposal to create a Global Dairy Department within the IUF was a perfect way to wrap up the Conference and will be a great solution for bringing together all the work being done in this field. Only the IUF can properly channel this global movement of dairy workers and continue to actively develop strategies, pursuing objectives that prioritize the strengthening of ties among labor organizations around the world, which is especially important in light of the current consolidation of the process of globalization.

 

The invitation we received from Ron Oswald at the Conference to present this proposal to the IUF’s International Executive Committee is a great honor for us, but it is also a great responsibility. An honor because ATILRA is an organization that in the past lost too much time over issues that are no longer worth discussing, but which for some years now has worked very hard. We have gotten back on track with our efforts inside and outside the organization, and the enormous recognition and praise we received in this Conference reaffirms our commitment and sense of responsibility.

 

We are confident that we will rise to the occasion.

 

Arturo Jorge Videla

National Dairy Undersecretary


Concern for today and for the long term

 

 

This Conference has been highly successful, among other things because it has enabled a gathering of all the players involved in the chain of production.

 

It has also been important because it allowed workers from many parts of the world to share their opinions and views with each other and develop common strategies together.

 

I have drawn many things from this Conference, but right now I would just like to point out two important conclusions: one is -and I've mentioned this to Héctor Ponce- that the dairy producers who participated and spoke at this event should be members of the IUF, they should be working with the IUF, especially here in the MERCOSUR region.

 

The other has to do with Argentina and the fact that having achieved this common space for communication and exchange between labor unions, producers, industrialists and the government constitutes a very rare instance of participation in this country.

 

The time is right for us to start addressing the long-term future of the sector. This should generate a synergy that will put us, as a sector, among the countries that are better organized in this area.

 

Neuza Barbosa de Lima

Vice President of the IUF's Latin American Executive Committee


This Conference should serve as an example for all

 

This is an unprecedented and very important event. And it is particularly important because ATILRA, the Argentine organization that hosted the event, gathered everyone who is involved in dairy production. This has to serve as an example and be an incentive for other countries to engage in similar dialogues.

 

The Conference has also been very interesting because all the presentations were excellent, and they've contributed to strengthen our work agenda and make it more focused on concrete actions.

 

Lastly, as Vice President of the Latin American Secretariat of the IUF, I feel proud of our regional office. We have shown the world that we can achieve much more, that our “Farm to Fork” organization strategy is yielding results, and this was clearly demonstrated at the Conference, where we were able to attract and involve small producers with whom we share common problems and the same great challenges, one of which is defending Food Sovereignty.

 

 

Sebastián Serena

Agro-Food Federation│General Workers’

Confederation of Spain (UGT)


We have to press forward and strengthen international coordination

 

 

We want to congratulate ATILRA for its organization of the event, and the IUF, especially its Latin American Regional Office, because we believe it provides the perfect space to debate on the global dairy sector.

 

Over these past days we were able to see that the problems Argentina faces are no different from those faced by Germany, France, Spain and New Zealand

 

This leads us to the following conclusion: we should continue to move forward with a global trade union strategy that will help us solve these problems.

 

In his presentation, the representative of Argentina's small dairy producers highlighted the real problems faced by the sector, and mentioned something that is very important: dairy production is an activity that allows rural populations to stay on the land, maintains an environmental balance, and is very necessary because the dairy sector is a strategic industry for any country.

 

We have to keep moving in that same direction, and commit ourselves to further the international coordination efforts that were initiated at this Conference.

 

 

Ron Oswald

IUF General Secretary


Together we can achieve more…

 

The participation of such a large number of trade unions and so many delegates has made this the most inclusive Conference we've ever had in the IUF's dairy sector. I think we can now say that there are several members determined to make significant and concrete progress in the sector on a global level.

 

I've felt extremely supported by the efforts of our Latin American Regional Office, Rel-UITA, and by the entire region. Their work has been critical, and it was decisive in making this activity possible.

 

What I've heard from most of the delegates that participated in the Conference is that it has been an enormous success and the discussions have been very relevant. Many felt inspired and are encouraged by ATILRA's work and by the strength exhibited by this trade union, which is probably one of the strongest dairy trade unions in the world.

 

The challenge we have before us now is to make the Conference not an end in itself but a beginning. We have to start building a new structure, a global organization of dairy workers within the IUF that can take on the great challenges we have before us, addressing environmental issues, global warming and other crosscutting issues. And this requires that trade unions and producers come together to face these challenges, which is something some are already doing.

 

We have to join together to address such delicate issues as trade, quotas and subsidies, as well as the changing nature of the industry and the growing influence of transnational corporations in the sector. That's what prompted everything we've been saying these past two days: in sum, that we must organize to take on these large companies. 

 

The Conference was in itself a great challenge, as it demanded a lot of work, but now we face the even greater challenge of accomplishing our goal, as successfully as we accomplished this Conference.

 

Key affiliate organizations expressed their commitment to get to work and achieve this, and with the efforts and support of the Latin American Regional Office, and naturally of the General Secretariat, we will work together to attain it.

 

 

From Buenos Aires, Carlos Amorín

Rel-UITA

March 23, 2010

 

 

 

 

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