Gauchos travel to SC to buy food after floods in RS: ‘Supply areas that were not affected’ | Santa Catarina

Gauchos travel to Santa Catarina to buy food

With the calamity situation due to the rains, establishments in Rio Grande do Sul have sought out the Santa Catarina State Supply Center (Ceasa) in São José, in Greater Florianópolis, as an alternative to maintain the supply of products in their regions.

The technical director of Ceasa de Santa Catarina, Emerson Martins, estimates that 400 tons of food have been purchased between Monday (6) and this Wednesday morning (8). The expectation is that the number will increase.

The new customers, according to Martins, are market and restaurant employees who bought the products at Ceasa in Porto Alegre (RS), which is underwater, and seek “supply areas that were not affected”.

This Wednesday (8), the Rio Grande do Sul Civil Defense updated the number of deaths due to the storms to 100.

“There was a truck driver who arrived here yesterday [terça-feira] at night very tired and psychologically shaken. They called us tonight, we opened the gates so they could sleep here in the courtyard more safely,” said Martins.

The average number of trucks arriving from Rio Grande do Sul, according to the director, was 10 on Monday – a number that remained the same the following day.

“We are getting in touch with these buyers to make their lives easier, to find out what products and prices we have, we are making this connection with these buyers”, he states.

According to Martins, 4 thousand people circulate daily in Ceasa de São José. The management states that there has never been such a large movement of traders from Rio Grande do Sul.

“Buyers are coming from Rio Grande do Sul to supply areas that were not affected and supply products to establishments that were not affected, as far as possible, such as greengrocers, grocery stores and supermarkets”, added technical director of Ceasa-SC.

Joel Viana, manager of a fruit store in Torres (RS), a coastal municipality that borders the extreme south of Santa Catarina, reports that even suppliers who delivered directly from their fields were unable to take the products due to blocked roads.

This Wednesday morning, he filled a truck with more than 20 tons of fruits, vegetables, and vegetables, heading to the city where he operates. He believes he should return next week.

“They are counting on me getting there with this merchandise, to guarantee this supply”, he informed.