US, Mexico settle tomato trade dispute
125%, from 1.6 billion pounds to 3.6 billion pounds, during the same period.
“Tomato growers shouldn’t have to lose their livelihoods because of a bad deal imposed upon them by their own government, and that’s exactly what was happening under the previous suspension agreement,” Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who led the charge to reopen the anti-dumping investigation, said earlier this month. “The fact remains that the Mexicans have avoided serious negotiations for well over a year, preferring to use scare tactics and inflammatory rhetoric to try to force President (Donald) Trump and Secretary Ross to back down on their commitment to ensure that American tomato growers are able to fairly compete in our own domestic market.”
Mexican growers disputed accusations of dumping and unfair practices, arguing that Florida’s declining tomato industry was a result of its difficulty in producing quality, affordable products. Negotiations have been ongoing for months, but the U.S. insistence that all imported tomatoes be subject to quality inspection became a sticking point.
“Inspections of Mexican tomatoes would accomplish nothing because USDA records show that 99% of tomatoes meet standards upon arrival at customers’ warehouses. The Florida Tomato Exchange has told Commerce that the increased inspections would not impact the flow of trade, which is an assertion that is simply not true,” Lance Jungmeyer, president of the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas in Nogales, Arizona, said earlier this month. “The inspections would add more than $270 million in unnecessary costs.”
A 92% inspection rate is a compromise, but a coalition of Mexican agricultural associations criticized the terms of the agreement Wednesday, Reuters reported. The new tomato agreement is slated to be reviewed again in 2024.
Mexico exports about $2 billion worth of tomatoes to the U.S. each year, which accounts for more than half of the U.S. tomato market, but the trade benefits Americans beyond mealtime. A November study from the University of Arizona estimated that Mexican tomatoes support about 33,000 jobs and contribute nearly $3 billion to the United States’ GDP.