INTA and INV, on pause: the key agricultural bodies remain on "stand by" despite the reform attempt

Two of the most relevant public bodies for the development of Argentine agriculture are going through a scenario of strong uncertainty. The National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) and the National Institute of Vitiviniculture (INV) remain under the scrutiny of the national government, which seeks to advance their restructuring, although the changes being pushed remain halted by internal resistance, questioning from the private sector itself, and pending judicial decisions. The starting point was in July of this year, when the then presidential spokesperson—and current Chief of Staff—Manuel Adorni labeled both bodies as "inefficient" when announcing a mega decree that proposed advancing the deregulation of INTA, INV, and the National Institute of Seeds (INASE). In that context, Adorni pointed especially at INTA, arguing that it had deviated from its historical role and had been used for political activism purposes, under guidelines alien to the needs of the ...