Etchandy spoke on “Sucroenergy activity from the north of the country to the world.”
The manager of the Institute for the Promotion of Sugar and Alcohol of Tucumán (Ipaat), Jorge Etchandy, spoke at the IVth World Circular Economy Summit. This event, organized by the Municipality of Córdoba and the Ente BioCórdoba, became one of the highlights in the annual schedule of activities for the environment.
The summit focused on the integration of the four “Cs” of economies: Knowledge, Community, Creative and Circular, recognizing their importance in the fight against climate change and in promoting sustainable development.
During his intervention in the Bioeconomy panel in Northern Argentina, Etchandy addressed the topic “Sucroenergy activity from northern Argentina to the world”, highlighting the fundamental role of Ipaat and its services in supporting the productive sector of the province.
“The production of the sugar-alcohol complex is the main industry of Tucumán. Currently it is the most important because it is a great source of employment, because of the large production volumes that supply more than half of the country’s population and because of its significant contribution to the NOA’s GDP,” he stated.
He also presented the productive matrix of the region, telling about the sugar-alcohol industry of the region, including the provinces of Tucumán, Salta and Jujuy with their productive capacity and planted area.
He also highlighted the importance of sustainable development in this sector; and emphasized that for more than a decade, Tucuman mills have been making investments to implement greater care in their systems and processes as part of their environmental management.
In addition, he said that Provincial Law No. 9,766 – recently promulgated – seeks to promote the production, consumption and comprehensive use of biofuels, including the transformation of biomass derived from sugar cane into bioenergy.
He thanked his participation in this summit for having shown how the circular economy of sugarcane offers opportunities to improve sustainability in the industry, thus contributing to the mitigation of climate change.
“For a long time, the province used the slogan ‘Tucumán is sugar’, but with the advancement of the energy transition, we have seen a significant change. Now we talk about ‘Tucumán is Energy’. This bicentennial industry has known how to adapt to current changes and today they work to care for the environment,” he concluded.
He also participated in the panel “Bioeconomy in Northern Argentina” Marcelo Ruiz, from the Obispo Colombres Agroindustrial Experimental Station (Eeaoc). He spoke on “Sustainability in the agroindustry of Tucumán and the sugar cane biorefinery.”
