While all of the agriculture industry waits to see who the Trump administration will get confirmed in the major positions and how trade will be approached, in late December, the United States scored a decisive victory in its dispute with Mexico over genetically engineered corn restrictions.
A panel convened under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement ruled in favor of the United States on all seven legal claims that Mexico’s measures violated the trade pact. The ruling means that Mexico must end its restrictions on U.S. biotech corn imports.
The decision was hailed as landmark for American farmers and sends a strong message to trading partners worldwide that trade agreements grounded in science and fairness cannot be undermined.
National Corn Growers Association president and Illinois corn farmer Kenneth Hartman Jr., says “This is an incredible development for the nation’s corn growers and rural communities. 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.
“Mexico is the U.S.’s top customer for corn, and if this decree had been left unchecked, it would have had disastrous effects on America’s corn growers. In addition, this ban would disrupt the innovation pipeline — impeding farmers’ access to technology — negatively impact trade flows and greenlight other countries to take similar action.
Mexico is the largest buyer of U.S. corn, importing $4.8 billion worth of the gold grain from the United States between January and October 2024. Exports are critical to U.S. producers.