Browse Data and Analysis

Mexico has not officially reported any approvals for genetically engineered (GE) agricultural products for food and feed use since May 2018. Additionally, Mexico has not approved any permit applications for cultivation of GE crop (cotton and alfalfa)...

Mexico was the second largest food and agricultural export market for U.S. exporters in 2021 with exports valued at $26.5 billion. Mexico’s economy grew by 4.8 percent in 2021, following a dramatic 8.1 percent contraction in 2020 due to the pandemic. Recovery is ongoing, underpinned by favorable consumption, Mexico’s deep economic integration with its North American neighbors, and the tourist sector’s recovery.

The following is the first in a series of reports prepared by the Agricultural Trade Office in Monterrey, Mexico, to provide background on local and regional markets of interest for current and prospective exporters of U.S. food and beverage products.

Amidst continuing supply chain concerns both in North America and around the globe, understanding how, where and when our bilateral trade with Mexico occurs is as important as ever for actors within food and agricultural sectors.

Total citrus production in Mexico across oranges, lemons/limes, and grapefruit is expected to decline in market year (MY) 2022/23 due to challenges such as damage to trees from increasingly severe weather conditions over multiple seasons, particularly in Northeastern producing states, and the rising costs of inputs and logistics for producers that is pressuring yields downward.

Blueberry area planted went from around 7,000 hectares (ha) in marketing year (MY) 2010/11 to over 18,000 ha in MY 2021/22. The United States is the top market for Chilean fresh and frozen blueberries, receiving more than half of the Chilean export volume.

With solid political institutions, a stable macroeconomic environment, and well-functioning financial markets, Chile ranks amongst the highest nations in competitiveness in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the IMD (World Competitiveness Ranking, 2022).

In marketing year (MY) 2021/22, citrus yields decreased due to frost during the winter in the Valparaíso, Metropolitana, and O’Higgins regions. FAS Santiago estimates lemon production to decrease by 30 percent to 140,000 metric tons (MT) in MY 2021/22 and to bounce back to 200,000 metric tons in MY 2022/23, assuming normal yields.

Cotton consumption in marketing year (MY) 2022/23 is forecast at 2 million bales, slightly lower than previously forecasted, a decrease which is projected to reduce imports of U.S. cotton.

This report provides an overview of Chile’s current Sanitary Regulation for food Products (RSA by its name in Spanish), as well as any other regulation with the potential of disrupting food trade.

Overall, Mexico’s market year (MY) 2022/23 deciduous fruit production is projected to remain steady year-to-year, with apple production increasing marginally by 1 percent, but from what is estimated to be a small MY 2021/22 crop.

This report lists and describes certificates and other documents that must accompany food and agricultural imports to Chile as required by Chilean regulations. Three new certificates were developed since the last version of this report, one for vampire bats, one for breeding swine, and one for hedgehogs. This report outlines the certificates that need to accompany all imports of food products to Chile.