Record grain imports at 43 million tons

Both internal and external factors, as well as weather events, will cause Mexico to close 2024 with a record grain import of 43 million tons, the highest since records began, according to the Agricultural Markets Consulting Group (GCMA).

If the forecast for the purchase of basic products such as corn, wheat, beans, rice and sorghum, among others, is realized, the annual increase will be almost 7 percent compared to the 40.3 million tons imported last year.

For Juan Carlos Anaya, director general of GCMA, this record reveals a deep crisis in the countryside due to lack of financing, high costs, low prices and poor crop yields. In fact, grain production will be the lowest in the last 10 years, warned the specialist.

He explained that this year grain imports will be related to the drop in production due to the severe drought that hit the country during the first half of the year, which was combined with increased demand from the population, competitive international prices and the appreciation of the peso against the dollar.

Imports of five grains and soybeans accounted for 55.2 percent of national demand during the first half of the year, as the area planted with grains and oilseeds was reduced by 9.3 percent and production is estimated to be 20.7 percent lower than in the same period last year, the GCMA said.

He indicated that national production of corn, wheat, sorghum, soybeans, rice and beans in the first half of the year is estimated at 32 million tons, 4 million tons less than the same period in 2023 and a drop of 13.1 percent.