Buenos Aires - The Argentine government has blinked for the first time since a 79-day farmers strike began, announcing ceilings on progressive export taxes on grain and soya, but farmers scoffed at the measure.

"This is not a real change but only an announcement for the urban public," Eduardo Buzzi, president of the Argentine Agrarian Federation, said of the measure announced Thursday by cabinet chief Alberto Fernandez.

The head of the federation in Entre Rios province, Alfredo De Angeli, who led a three-week strike in March, called the tax ceiling window dressing.

"It is only more of what the government has said before," he said.

The strikes began in March when the government raised export taxes on soya from 35 to 44 per cent. That tax rate is not to be changed under the government's proposal Thursday. Instead, a tax ceiling is to be set, and a lowering of the tax rate would only come if world prices rise above the ceiling.

The government of President Cristina Kirchner had broken off talks Monday with the farmers, and her Peronist party accused the strikers of being "anti-democratic" and trying to bring down the government. Thursday ceiling was decided without consultations with the farmers.

The farmers on Wednesday had taken up their strike for the third time since March, vowing to block the export of grain and beans, such as soya, until Monday. On Thursday, they also plan to stop the delivery of cattle to slaughterhouses through Monday.

After years of meagre earnings, Argentina's farmers don't want the export duties to cut into their profits just as they have begun to see more money flowing in with higher world food prices.

The halt to agricultural exports have proved expensive for the government because a large part of its income comes from export duties. (dpa)