U.S. files USMCA challenge to Mexico’s corn import rules

 

Putting its warnings into action, the Biden administration officially accused Mexico on Thursday of violating North American trade rules by prohibiting imports of genetically modified white corn used in making tortillas, a staple of the Mexican diet. Mexico, the birthplace of corn and a top U.S. trade partner, said it was ready to defend its ban before a USMCA dispute panel.

U.S. trade representative Katherine Tai said that months of informal negotiations over corn trade had proved fruitless. “Today the United States is taking the next step in enforcing Mexico’s obligations under the USMCA. Through the USMCA dispute panel, we seek to resolve our concerns and help ensure that consumers can continue to access safe and affordable food and agricultural products.”

The United States, a global leader in agricultural biotechnology, fiercely defends GM crops as safe to eat. Biotech crops are grown on 55 percent of U.S. cropland, and the lion’s share of corn, soybeans, cotton, and sugar beets are grown with GM seeds. The Biden administration says the USMCA requires free trade in agriculture.

“Mexico does not agree with the position of the United States,” said the Ministry of Economy. In a statement, the ministry said it “is prepared to defend the Mexican position before this international panel.” Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador says he is defending Mexico’s biocultural heritage and preserving the purity of the food supply.

The USMCA dispute panel could take eight months to reach a decision, said three Ohio State University analysts earlier this year. They said that while the United States was likely to win, Mexico, rather than amending its trade rules, could refuse to comply and instead accept U.S. suspension of an equivalent amount of trade benefits.

In February, Mexico said it would block imports of genetically modified white corn that would be used to make tortillas or other food for human consumption, with a ban on yellow corn, used in livestock feed, to take effect in January.

White corn accounts for about 4 percent of Mexico’s imports of U.S. corn. Mexico is the largest market for U.S. corn exports.

“Mexico’s decree, which runs counter to scientific findings and is in direct violation of USMCA, is negatively impacting American corn growers,” said Tom Haag, president of the National Corn Growers Association. Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said, “Mexico’s ban on bioengineered corn is not only a clear violation of USMCA, it also ignores science.”

Mexico is the second-largest market for U.S. farm exports, and it is the leading source of food and ag imports. The two-way trade was forecast to total $74.7 billion this year, or $1 of every $5 worth of ag imports and exports.