Agriculture Industry Reacts to Mexico GM Corn Dispute Outcome

On Friday a trade dispute panel ruled that Mexico’s restrictions on U.S. exports of genetically modified corn violate the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The USMCA panel agreed with the United States on all seven legal claims, finding that Mexico’s measures are not based on science and undermine the market access that Mexico agreed to provide in the USMCA.

Agriculture industry groups and government officials celebrated the outcome in statements published reacting to the news.

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack

“We commend the dispute settlement panel for its thorough and impartial assessment, which affirms that Mexico’s approach to biotechnology was not based on scientific principles or international standards. Mexico’s measures ran counter to decades’ worth of evidence demonstrating the safety of agricultural biotechnology, underpinned by science- and risk-based regulatory review systems,” said agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack.

United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai

“The panel’s ruling reaffirms the United States’ longstanding concerns about Mexico’s biotechnology policies and their detrimental impact on U.S. agricultural exports,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “It underscores the importance of science-based trade policies that allow American farmers and agricultural producers to compete fairly and leverage their innovation to address climate change and enhance productivity. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the Mexican government to ensure a level playing field and provide access to safe, affordable, and sustainable agricultural products on both sides of the border.”

Chief Agricultural Negotiator Doug McKalip

“This ruling is a critical step in ensuring that U.S. farmers can continue to compete fairly in the global marketplace. We have worked tirelessly with the interagency and industry stakeholders for almost four years to address this issue, and we remain committed to ensuring Mexico complies with its obligations under the USMCA and eliminates its USMCA-inconsistent measures. This outcome supports our efforts to maintain a strong, science-based trade relationship that benefits American producers and consumers in both the U.S. and Mexico.”

National Corn Growers Association

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is a farmer-led trade organization that represents the interests of more than 300,000 farmers. The organization’s leaders argued that the ban would significantly harm growers and rural communities, especially because Mexico is the number one export destination for U.S. corn. 

“This is an incredible development for the nation’s corn growers and rural communities,” said Illinois farmer and NCGA President Kenneth Hartman Jr. “This outcome is a direct result of the advocacy efforts of corn grower leaders from across the country. We want to thank the nation’s growers for speaking out and U.S. officials for listening and acting.”

Iowa Corn

Iowa Corn leadership echoed the national commodity organization.

“Iowa’s farmers rely heavily on trade and corn exports to Mexico,” said Stu Swanson, Iowa Corn Growers Association President and farmer from Galt. “That’s why we joined other state and NCGA grower leaders in pushing USTR to challenge this ban. Mexico is a key market for corn in all forms and it has been an important push to remove barriers to allow trade.”

Illinois Corn Growers Association

Garret Hawkins serves as Illinois Corn Growers Association President and farms in Waterloo. He called the outcome positive for fellow farmers.

“The panel’s decision affirms ICGA’s position that Mexico is not abiding by the terms of the USMCA. It’s good news for Illinois corn farmers and Mexican corn importers. As the largest corn export state in the union, Illinois corn farmers are proponents of free trade agreements and of making free trade agreements work. ICGA and the National Corn Growers Association had a significant role in fighting this unscientific Mexican government overreach and urging the U.S. Trade Representative to challenge the ban that would limit Mexican buyers’ choices and reduce U.S. market access. We are so happy to see the ruling issued in our favor and look forward to building our trade relationship with our top export customer for all types of corn,” he said.

U.S. Grains Council

U.S. Grains Council (USCG) President and CEO Ryan LeGrand was quick to thank the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, saying, “Mexico has always been a powerful partner to U.S. corn growers and exporters, so when the country tried banning GM corn imports that would have severely affected our industry, we appreciated the extra effort the U.S. Trade Representative gave in filing the dispute and seeing it through to its logical conclusion. The Council worked with the USTR and in Mexico to help ensure the dispute result was fair, and we look forward to continuing our work with our top U.S. grains-in-all-forms customer.”

USGC Chairwoman Verity Ulibarri added, “U.S. corn farmers and exporters understood how devastating this ban could have been had it been implemented, so it’s only right that mechanisms are in place within a trade agreement like USMCA when something like this happens. The Council believes in both free and fair trade and this decision has upheld our mission of developing markets, enabling trade and improving lives.”

American Farm Bureau Federation

“Farm Bureau applauds the USMCA panel decision regarding Mexico’s actions to ban biotech corn for human consumption and animal feed. The panel affirmed what AFBF and America’s farmers have emphasized all along – biotech corn is safe and decisions must be based on science, not politics,” said American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall.

“We thank the U.S. Trade Representative for defending the safety of biotech corn and pursuing Mexico’s action as a violation of USMCA. If left in place, Mexico’s restrictions would have impacted the corn supply chain, stifled innovation, hurt trade and opened the door for other countries to pursue similar restrictive measures.”