Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack met with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador earlier this week. The leaders discussed a looming decree by the Mexican president that would ban imports of biotech corn into the country.
In a statement following the meeting, Vilsack commented, “We must find a way forward soon and I emphasized in no uncertain terms that – absent an acceptable resolution of the issue – the U.S. Government would be forced to consider all options.”
The options available include taking formal steps to enforce legal rights under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. National Corn Growers Association CEO Jon Doggett replied, “Today’s meeting shows that the Biden administration is listening to NCGA and American corn grower leaders and that Secretary Vilsack is willing to go to the mat for America’s farmers.”
The Mexican President has promised to enact a decree that would end imports of corn grown using biotech and certain herbicides by 2024.