Agriculture & Fisheries

The Peruvian agriculture sector grew 1.5% in 2013 and 1.6% in 2014, according to the central bank, well below overall GDP growth of 5.8% and 2.4%, respectively. In the first six months of 2015 the sector contributed nearly 6% to GDP, and the fishing industry another 0.5%. Yet, while exports have risen strongly, sector growth in the first quarter of 2015 was just 0.5%, although this picked up to 2.9% year-on-year in the second quarter. Exports of agricultural and fish products have grown at 10-15% per annum from a base of $925m in 2000. In 2014 sector exports surpassed $5bn, a 19% increase on the figure from the previous year. This chapter contains an interview with Mario Mustafá, President, Ecosac.