USTR files dispute settlement in response to Mexico corn ban
The Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) is pleased with today’s announcement by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai that her office is filing a dispute settlement under the U.S.- Mexico-Canada Agreement in response to Mexico’s planned biotech corn ban. The filing means a group of objective experts will determine whether Mexico’s planned ban violates the trade agreement.
“Minnesota corn farmers need open trade with Mexico, and the Mexican people need U.S. corn,” MCGA President Richard Syverson said in a statement. “We appreciate that Ambassador Tai has officially filed this dispute and look forward to the resolution of this process.”
In 2020, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced a ban on imports of biotech corn beginning in January 2024. López Obrador issued a revised decree in February that immediately banned biotech corn for human consumption and left the door open for a future ban on biotech corn for feed.
Mexico is a top market for U.S. corn. A ban would harm corn farmers and rural communities across the U.S., as well as the people of Mexico.
For months, MCGA, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), and other state corn grower associations urged the Biden administration to take a tough position on Mexico’s proposed ban. In December, Syverson, NCGA President Tom Haag, and 21 other state corn grower leaders sent a letter to President Biden urging him to act on this issue. NCGA also elevated the issue through briefings and news articles in national publications.
“Mexico’s actions, which are not based on sound science, have threatened the financial wellbeing of corn growers and our nation’s rural communities,” Haag said. “We are deeply appreciative of Ambassador Katherine Tai and USTR for moving this process forward and thankful for the efforts of Secretary Tom Vilsack and members of Congress for standing up for farmers in such a meaningful way.”
