Mexico
Negotiators agree on one chapter for new NAFTA, look to quicken pace
At the end of three rounds of negotiations on the new NAFTA, trade ministers from the United States, Canada, and Mexico said they are agreed on a chapter dealing with small and medium-sized enterprises, and that they hope to conclude a chapter on competition before the next round, set for Oct. 11–15 in Washington. A tri-national statement did not mention any discussion of agricultural issues, although “meaningful advancements” were cited in five areas, including the competition chapter.
In NAFTA talks, U.S. is slow to spell out its proposals
If it's Monday, it must be Canada for trade officials who are in their third round of talks less than six weeks after NAFTA negotiations began on Aug. 16 with hopes of an agreement before the end of the year. The CBC, quoting an unnamed source close to negotiations, says the U.S. team is lagging when it comes to putting its ideas into writing so there can be detailed discussions.
GMO corn found in most tortillas in Mexico
Ninety percent of tortillas tested by researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico contained traces of genetically modified corn, said the site Mexico News Daily. The lead researcher said the results were striking because “cultivation of genetically modified corn in open fields is not allowed in Mexico.”
Consumers and the U.S. diet have a stake in the new NAFTA
U.S. ag exports rebound from slump, tie for third-largest ever
U.S. farm exports will total $139.8 billion this fiscal year, the third-highest tally ever and ending a slump in sales that begin in 2014 following the collapse of the commodity boom, estimated the USDA in a quarterly report. In its first forecast for fiscal 2018, the USDA pegged exports at $139 billion.
Trump says it again about NAFTA: ‘may have to terminate’
Mexico and Canada are being "very difficult" in negotiations for the new NAFTA, President Trump said with the second round of talks to begin on Friday, adding in a tweet, "may have to terminate?" It was the second time since talks started that Trump has said the United States might abandon the 1994 free trade agreement among the three largest countries, and neighbors, on the continent.
Canada and Mexico yawn at Trump threat to nix NAFTA
President Trump’s new threat to terminate NAFTA, made during a rally in Phoenix, is a negotiating tactic rather than a serious possibility, said Canadian and Mexican officials. “This was always a card we knew the president would likely play . . . it may have been a bit earlier than expected,” a Canadian official told Reuters.
After starting NAFTA talks, Trump says he may terminate the pact
President Trump told a rally in Phoenix that he may have to kill NAFTA in order to get better trade terms with Canada and Mexico. “Personally, I don’t think we can make a deal,” he said, days after the first round of negotiations for the new NAFTA. “I think we’ll end up probably terminating NAFTA at some point.”
Negotiators promise ‘accelerated’ NAFTA process
Canada, Mexico and the United States "are committed to an accelerated and comprehensive negotiation process" to write the new NAFTA, according to a joint statement from the three countries at the conclusion of a session in Washington. The second round of talks will be Sept. 1-5 in Mexico.
Farm groups to NAFTA negotiators: Do no harm, do no harm, do no harm
“From your perspective, would it have been better if the Trump administration had never raised the issue of renegotiating NAFTA?” The Bloomberg Radio reporter had to ask the question twice before he got an answer, maybe because it conveyed the uncomfortable, but undeniable, sentiment at Wednesday’s joint press conference by the three main farm groups from the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
As talks begin, here’s our recent NAFTA coverage
As talks between Canada, Mexico, and the United States begin on renegotiating NAFTA, here’s an archive of our recent coverage of the trade agreement in Ag Insider. (No paywall)
Avocado harvest falls, sending wholesale prices higher
With avocado production in California down nearly 50 percent from a year ago, prices are climbing, says the LA Times. Extreme heat and drought last summer affected the fruit that’s maturing this season. “When the heavy rains finally arrived in the winter, it was too late,” the report said.
On NAFTA, Mexicans will try to give Trump a ‘win’ without losing
As Mexican officials head to Washington this week to begin renegotiating NAFTA, they are balancing their specific goals with an awareness that the American president cares as much, or more, about the optics of the deal than the specifics, says the Los Angeles Times.
Mexico, home of avocados, may have to import the fruit
With the price of avocados too high for everyday Mexicans, the country’s officals are considering importing the fruit. Avocados are native to Mexico, which supplies roughly half the world’s demand, but a pound of the fruit now sells for 80 pesos — the same as Mexico’s minimum wage.
Perdue: New NAFTA mantra must be ‘Do no harm to agriculture’
With negotiations for the "new NAFTA" to begin next week, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue says he is repeating one message to the White House: First, do no harm to agriculture. U.S. farm exports to Canada and Mexico quadrupled under the 1994 trade agreement, and U.S. farm groups fear that renegotiating the deal will disrupt their duty-free access to the border nations.
Meet the farmers who say NAFTA hasn’t helped them
Big Ag has long chanted the benefits of NAFTA to American farmers, pointing out that the free-trade deal with Mexico and Canada has quadrupled U.S. farm exports since it went into effect in 1994. “But despite the largely pro-trade drumbeat in the ag sector, there are plenty of farmers who feel otherwise,” say Kristina Johnson and Sam Fromartz in FERN’s latest story, published with NPR’s The Salt.
Trump backs merit plan that halves legal immigration
Returning to a signature issue of his campaign, President Trump endorsed a Senate bill for a skills-based system for immigration that could have a distant effect on farm labor because it would halve the flow of legal immigrants. The Ag Workforce Coalition of farm groups said it "continues to work with key lawmakers on legislation that would address agriculture's needs" for a legal and reliable supply of farm workers with hopes the issue will gain traction in the fall.
Hand-wringing and hand-holding ahead of NAFTA talks
At nearly the same time Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue was calming fears of a downturn in U.S.-Mexico agricultural trade, some Mexican farm groups demanded that agriculture be left out of the "new NAFTA" negotiations that begin in 16 days.