Chile: 83% of growers hit by time ruling, says Fedefruta - FreshFruitPortal.com

Chile: 83% of growers hit by time ruling, says Fedefruta

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Chile: 83% of growers hit by time ruling, says Fedefruta

Chile's main fruit industry body has saidĀ 83% of the country's producers have been negatively affected by the government's decision not to adjust the clocks to wintertime this year.

Fedefruta president Juan Carolus Brown (center left) with Energy Minister MƔximo Pacheco (center right)

Fedefruta president Juan Carolus Brown (center left) with Energy Minister MƔximo Pacheco (center right)

The Federation of Fruit Producers (Fedefruta) said productivity was slipping due to there effectively being an additional hour of darkness in the mornings compared to previous years.

The organization said it had surveyed companies throughout the country and found that for 65% of respondents their employees' working hours had been reduced, while 41% had staff who had experienced problems adjustingĀ toĀ the change.

In addition, a third of the surveyed companies reported an increase in instances of workers arriving late due to colder morning temperatures, and 15% had registered a rise in work-related accidents caused by the darkness.

Fedefruta president John Carolus Brown recently met with Energy Minster MƔximo Pacheco to discuss these concerns.

"We shared this information that we gathered from more than 300 producers, so that the Energy Minister can look over it and reevaluate this rulingĀ which does not sitĀ well with farmworkers," Brown said following the meeting.

In terms of additional costs associated with the decision not to move the clocks to wintertime, 39% of companies said their energy costs had gone up, while 23% reported they had needed to hire extra laborers and 48% were sure productivity had been lost in the fields or packhouses.

Citrus producers also claimed worker efficiency had diminished, leading to delayed harvests.

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