Years of a back-and-forth battle over Mexico’s plan to ban imports of corn grown with biotech and glyphosate is finally, officially, thankfully, over.
The saga’s end is good news for U.S. corn growers, who exported $5.6 billion of corn to Mexico in 2024, making it the largest export market for American corn.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) said Thursday that it welcomes the action taken by the Government of Mexico toward resolving the dispute under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
USTR said Mexico’s action declares ineffective two sets of measures that USTR successfully challenged in the USMCA dispute. Those include an immediate ban on the use of biotech corn in dough and tortillas, and an instruction to Mexican government agencies to gradually eliminate the use of biotech corn for other food uses and in animal feed.
On Dec. 20, 2024, a USMCA panel agreed with the U.S. on all seven legal claims it brought against the bans, issuing its finding that Mexico’s measures were not based on science and undermine the market access that Mexico agreed to provide as part of the trade agreement.
“The United States will continue to monitor closely Mexico’s compliance with its USMCA commitments to ensure that Mexico’s agricultural biotechnology measures are based on science and provide U.S. corn growers the market access that Mexico agreed to provide in the USMCA,” USTR wrote in a statement.
“We are encouraged by today’s development and pleased by the impact of corn grower advocacy,” said Kenneth Hartman Jr., President of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA). “Mexico must comply with the report and eliminate all measures that ban or restrict the trade of genetically modified corn.”
“Farm Bureau applauds Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum for repealing her country’s ban on biotech corn imports from America,” said Zippy Duvall, President of the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). “Her predecessor’s attempt to limit trade between the two countries was a clear violation of the USMCA trade agreement, which was recently confirmed by a USMCA panel decision.
“A ban would have hurt hard-working families on both sides of the border. America’s farmers are dedicated to growing safe and affordable food, and they look forward to continued access to an important trading partner,” added Duvall.
Written by: Jon Adamy, Michigan Farm Bureau.
Additional sources: U.S. Trade Representative, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Corn Growers Association.