Asunción, 19 December 2022. The AL-INVEST Verde programme, through the Component 2and the Paraguayan Investment and Export Network (REDIEX) have initiated a joint action to promote the development of a national strategy to establish the traceability of the leather production process. To this end, individual identification, residence and health records of the animal will be carried out, data that will be cross-checked with those of the National Forestry Institute (Instituto Forestal Nacional (INFONA) of Paraguay on land use change.
The action seeks to promote the certification of the leather produced in Paraguay along the different links of the chain in order to increasing the competitiveness of Paraguayan leather in international markets and, in particular, to win back the European market. To this end, a consultancy is being carried out by leather sector experts from Italy, one of the countries in Europe with the highest imports of premium leather.
Among the activities foreseen in the framework of the action, there will be a diagnosis of the sustainability situation of the sectorThe project will focus on policies to promote traceability systems for the leather and meat production process. Based on the results obtained, a pilot project will be designed to enable the traceability of the process and the certification of Paraguayan leather that complies with land use legislation.
The ultimate goal is to supporting Paraguay in complying with European environmental legislationas the deforestation-free regulationThe EU's new traceability strategy, to encourage dialogue with international partners on the country's new traceability strategy and thus facilitate the sector's trade activity.
Value chain analysis
From 6 to 16 December, representatives of AL-INVEST Verde carried out a field mission in Paraguay to learn about the work of the different links in the leather value chain. They visited producer and exporter associations, cooperatives, livestock farms, tanneries and meat packing plants, and held meetings with the national authorities involved in the issue.
The mission provided an insight into the production model and the specificities related to traceability throughout the production cycle. Within this framework, the public and private sectors are working together to achieve this preliminary objective.
The first of these meetings took place at the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIC), where the public presentation of the action was made to the key actors who will take part in it. Representatives of the Paraguayan Traceability System (SITRAP), the National Animal Health and Quality Service (SENACSA), the National Forestry Institute (INFONA), the Paraguayan Association of Meat Producers and Exporters (APPEC), the Paraguayan Roundtable for Sustainable Meat (MPCS), and representatives of the meat processing and tannery sector attended.
They will support the action, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security.
About AL-INVEST Verde
AL-INVEST Verde is a European Union (EU) programme whose main objective is to promote sustainable growth and job creation in Latin America by supporting the transition towards a low-carbon, resource-efficient and more circular economy. Through Component 2, led by FIIAPP in consortium with IILA, the programme provides assistance for strengthening public policy and multi-stakeholder dialogues on sustainable agricultural and value chains, environmental and labour standards, as well as sustainable trade and economic policy and regulatory frameworks.
Further information: www.alinvest-verde.eu
