The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency was forced to suspend rail operations at key points into and out of Mexico. The move is to help alleviate the sharp increase in illegal immigration at the border.
These actions affect U.S. corn and barley shipments, two commodities the U.S. Grains Council represents.
The CBP is working with the Mexican government to remedy the situation as quickly as possible, but there’s no timeline for returning to normal operations.
“The North American trading system relies on interconnectedness, and any disruption affects Mexican and U.S. Commodities,” says USGC Chair Ryan LeGrand. “It’s vital the situation gets resolved in a timely manner.”
A letter from the National Corn Growers Association says, “We are aware of trains sitting at origin in at least six states that are unable to move, and we expect that number to grow. Mexican customers are telling U.S. shippers that they’ll soon consider other suppliers.”
UPDATE ON FRIDAY, DEC. 22 AT 4:30 P.M.:
Railroad crossings along the U.S. – Mexico border at El Paso and Eagle Pass have been reopened as of 2:00 pm Friday afternoon.
“We certainly welcome this development,” says Mike Steenhoek, Executive Director of the Soy Transportation Coalition. “Agricultural and other stakeholders quickly responded to the announced closures by highlighting the severe consequences to our industry and the broader economy. That message clearly appears to have resonated. In addition to ‘quality,’ one of the other components of U.S. agriculture’s brand is ‘reliability.’ In order to maintain that reputation, we need to have a supply chain, including railroad border crossings, that can effectively connect farmers with international customers. We appreciate that the border closure was not extended any further as that would have only served to encourage our Mexican customers to explore other sources of supply while imposing further hardship on farmers and agricultural exporters.”
The statement from U.S. Customs and Border Protection is below:
“To meet the challenge we are currently seeing across the southwest border, CBP is continuing to use all available resources to ensure the safety and security of our agents and officers, and the migrants who are often misled and victimized by transnational criminal organizations. After observing a recent shift in the trends of smuggling organizations moving migrants through Mexico, CBP took additional actions to surge personnel and address this concerning development, including in partnership with Mexican authorities. The Office of Field Operations has re-directed personnel and resources in order to support the U.S. Border Patrol as well as perform its critical functions including the security and facilitation of lawful trade and travel.
“Beginning December 22, 2023 at 2:00 pm Eastern, CBP’s Office of Field Operations will resume operations at the international railway crossing bridges in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas.
“CBP will continue to prioritize our border security mission as necessary in response to this evolving situation. We continue to assess security situations, adjust our operational plans, and deploy resources to maximize enforcement efforts against those noncitizens who do not use lawful pathways or processes such as CBP One™ and those without a legal basis to remain in the United States.
“Over the past several weeks, CBP has made a number of operational adjustments in order to maximize our ability to respond, process, and enforce consequences. As of December 22:
- In Eagle Pass, Texas vehicular processing remains suspended at Eagle Pass International Bridge 1.
- In San Diego, California, San Ysidro’s Pedestrian West operations remain suspended.
- In Lukeville, Arizona, the Lukeville Port of Entry operations remain suspended.
- In Nogales, Arizona, the Morely Gate border crossing operations remain suspended.
“Members of the traveling public can check operational status, including Port of Entry wait times.”
