Avocado producers, on a collision course with Mexico, United States, and Canada Treaty (T-MEC) rules

Published Feb 13, 2022

Tridge summary

Mexico's failure to adhere to nine OECD agricultural standards, particularly in avocado production, could lead to export restrictions under the T-MEC trade agreement, potentially impacting the national economy and Michoacán's avocado industry, which is expanding despite environmental concerns like deforestation and water overuse. These practices contradict the T-MEC's environmental provisions, with avocado production contributing to deforestation, greenhouse effects, and water scarcity, particularly in Michoacán where 75% of production takes place. If not addressed, these issues could result in sanctions or export bans, similar to previous restrictions on tuna and shrimp, threatening Mexico's agro-industrial sector, which includes avocado, beer, and tequila exports, that reached a value of $3,850 million in 2021.

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Original content

BRAULIO CARBAJAL. THE DAY. They do not comply with the nine points of the OECD for agriculture. There is a risk of an export veto: experts. The cultivation of avocado, one of the three main exports of the agricultural and agro-industrial sector, along with beer and tequila, is supported by practices such as indiscriminate and illegal felling of trees, damage to the subsoil and excessive use of water, which go Contrary to what was agreed in the Treaty of Mexico, the United States and Canada (T-MEC) regarding the care of the environment, specialists explained. If the government does not create stricter standards to which avocado producers must adhere, mainly those established in Michoacán, Mexico will eventually violate the trade agreement with the US and Canada, specifically the environmental area, which in the near future may translate in sanctions or vetoes, which will affect the national economy, they pointed out. According to data from the Bank of Mexico, during 2021 the value ...

Source: Inforural