Dependence on imported yellow corn grows

The Mexican government remains firm in its intention to eliminate imports of genetically modified yellow corn as of 2024, but this aspiration arises at one of the times of greatest dependence of the country on imported grain -mainly from the United States-, which is mostly transgenic

In the recently concluded 2021-2022 season, imports climbed 4.6% to a record 16,540,000 tons, with which their share of the national supply grew from 71 to 75%, the second highest figure in the last decade, only behind the level of 75.7% registered in 2014, according to calculations based on figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Sader).

Meanwhile, national production grew 13.5% to 3 million 183,000 tons, with which its supply coverage also grew, in fact, from 12.6 to 14.4%, however, it was far from its last peak of 21%, reached in 2015. The simultaneous advance in the share of production and imports was possible thanks to a 35% drop in inventories to two million 340,000 tons of grain.

In the last decade, the volume of yellow corn imports has grown annually by an average of 14%, while production has grown at a rate of 6.9 percent.

This accelerated advance of the imported product coincides with the growing appetite of the livestock sector (livestock feed), where 78.2% of the national demand originated in the last season, which amounted to 19 million 828,000 tons.

This coverage registered a historical maximum and was more than 15 percentage points higher than the level of 2013 (62.9% of the total demand of that year).

Negative to transgenic corn

Yesterday, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador reiterated his government’s refusal to continue imports of yellow corn -raised through a decree in January 2021-, under the argument of providing protection to native corn varieties in the country. .

He even affirmed that in his last visit to the United States, from which some agreements regarding the purchase of agricultural supplies and food emerged, he was proposed that the Mexican government buy transgenic yellow corn, which he refused.

The president did not give details of who would have made the request to his administration, nor of the amounts requested to buy, nor did he give a precise date of when the request would have occurred.

During the visit, carried out last July, the Mexican government committed to the purchase of 10,000 tons of powdered milk from the United States, in addition to fertilizers.

“There is a market, which continues to be sustained, but the government cannot make a purchase of yellow corn because we do not want transgenics,” said López Obrador in his morning conference.

“That corn is basically fodder. We do not want it to be consumed by the people,” the president stressed in his morning press conference. “We are a free, sovereign country and not by selling yellow corn are we going to get sick and we are going to put aside our native corn,” he added.

T-MEC conflict, at the door

Agricultural groups in the United States have publicly asked their government to challenge, within the framework of the North American trade pact, the T-MEC, Mexico’s decision to veto transgenic corn, warning of possible economic damage of billions of dollars. dollars for both countries.

In a virtual meeting last week, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai raised with Raquel Buenrostro the importance of avoiding a disruption in US corn exports and returning to a regulatory approval process “based on science and risk.” for all agricultural biotechnological products in Mexico”.

Last year, Mexican purchases of American yellow corn grew 76% to a record amount of 4,717 million dollars. (with information from Reuters)

octavio.amador@eleconomista.mx