Hundreds of corn, bean, and soy farmers in Huila have incurred losses totaling 7.2 billion pesos from atypical rains in January and February. The National Federation of Cereal, Legume, and Soy Growers (Fenalce) urges the National Government to implement urgent support measures to mitigate the impact on the country's food security.
The winter wave has severely impacted farmers in Huila, with estimated losses of 7.2 billion pesos in corn and bean crops, as reported by Arnulfo Trujillo Díaz, general manager of Fenalce. Of this amount, 6 billion pesos correspond to corn, affecting 125 producers across 900 hectares in municipalities such as Garzón, Altamira, Guadalupe, Suaza, Pitalito, Campoalegre, Algeciras, Rivera, Palermo, and Neiva. For beans, losses total 1.2 billion pesos, impacting 135 hectares belonging to 220 families in Santa María, Colombia, La Plata, El Pital, and San Agustín. Additionally, over 50% of the recently planted 400 hectares of soy—equivalent to more than 200 hectares from 75 producers—have also been damaged, with potential additional losses of 700 million pesos.
These unexpected rains, occurring during the normally dry season, coincided with critical stages like physiological maturity and harvest, leading to total losses in some cases and grain quality deterioration in others. Trujillo Díaz stressed that corn and beans are strategic crops for Colombia's food sovereignty, and this situation endangers the agricultural sector's competitiveness and the livelihoods of hundreds of families.
The phenomenon is not isolated: departments like Córdoba, Nariño, Cundinamarca, southern Cesar, Boyacá, and Putumayo also report similar damages. Last year, similar rains in Huila, Nariño, and Cundinamarca received no government response despite submitted lists of affected parties. Fenalce has initiated consultation tables, starting in Córdoba on January 6, and plans to extend them to Huila and other regions.
To counter the impact, the federation urges producers to register at municipal Umata offices and Disaster Risk Management units. Their requests to the Government include special credits via Finagro for recovery and refinancing, direct economic support, emergency recognition by the Ungrd, technical assistance for climate adaptation, and enhanced subsidies for agricultural insurance. So far, there are no widespread price increases, but they could emerge for beans due to harvest delays and reduced quality.