Rondônia’s Milk Output Falls as Sector Seeks ICMS Review
Representatives of Rondônia’s dairy industry linked the fall in output to a smaller milk-cattle herd. Cirone Deiró, a vice-governor candidate who joined the meeting by videoconference, said the state’s declared herd fell from 3.34m dairy cows in 2019 to 2.47m today.
Rogério Bertelli, a director of the Dairy Industries Union (SINDILEITE), said the state now produces 2.3m litres less each day than it did previously. He estimated that the lost output represents R$5.14m in economic activity that does not circulate in Rondônia each day, or about R$144m a month and R$1.2bn a year.
ICMS and imported dairy products
The meeting, held at the Federation of Industries of Rondônia (FIERO), focused on the effects of state Law 1,473/05, which changes the collection of ICMS, a state tax on the circulation of goods and services. Industry representatives said the rules encourage imports of products including milk and dairy goods.
They also said official records identify Rondônia as Brazil’s largest importer of dairy products and argued that some of those goods are redirected to the country’s largest consumer markets. The sector’s proposals include amending the ICMS legislation and directing tax revenue generated by imports back to the dairy chain.
Hildon Chaves, a former mayor of Porto Velho and a candidate for state governor with the União Progressistas Federation, supported a legislative change at the meeting. “We will modify the current legislation in order to do justice to our producers,” he said.
Tax revenue and Pró-Leite
State government figures cited at the meeting put annual ICMS revenue from the dairy sector at about R$180m. A FIERO study estimated that annual revenue could reach R$1.2bn if the state returned to production levels similar to those of 15 years ago.
Industry representatives also challenged changes to the Pró-Leite Fund. They said a state decree issued last year diverted more than R$45m from the fund to cover Emater’s payroll. Mariana Carvalho, a Senate candidate who attended the meeting, questioned that use of the money, noting that Emater also supports coffee, cocoa, fish and beef production. The meeting included SINDILEITE, the Association of Girolando Breeders, the Federation of Agricultural Workers, FIERO officials and candidates for governor and the Senate.
