Mexico looks to stick it to New NAFTA

The article is from mid-December. I suspect there are other factors here, beyond what's noted therein. Namely, that like a lot of countries Mexico is fed up with U.S. "dumping" practices. And at least equally fed up with its agriculture being at the mercy of the ultra-exploitative greedheads of global Big Ag.

A high-level delegation from the Mexican government is in Washington today to discuss a series of bilateral trade issues, one of them being U.S. government and biotech industry claims that Mexico's intention to restrict imports of genetically modified corn in 2024 violates the new Agricultural Biotechnology provisions in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) that replaced NAFTA in 2020. Three years ago, the Mexican government announced its intention to phase out the use of the herbicide glyphosate and the importation of GM corn, citing both public health and environmental reasons.

U.S. and Mexican agribusiness interests responded with a demand that the U.S. government threaten Mexico with a USMCA trade dispute, arguing that the new USMCA provisions guarantee their rights to export GM corn to Mexico. Mexico is the largest export market for US corn, nearly all of which is genetically modified. The Mexican government has shown a willingness to negotiate the 2024 deadline, delaying the prohibition on GM feed corn imports, which constitute the vast majority of US exports to Mexico. Industry representatives continue to demand trade action from the U.S. government.

But does the Mexican action actually violate the Agricultural Biotechnology provisions of the USMCA? Senior trade attorney at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) Sharon Anglin Treat did a detailed textual analysis of the agreement earlier this year and concluded that Mexico is not obligated to accept GM corn exports from the United States if it has legitimate concerns about public health or the environment. - IATP

How much are farmers supposed to put up with, from this pitiful idiot?

The latest.

President Trump is bragging about a new deal with Mexico that provides for "large" sales of U.S. farm goods, but it doesn't appear to exist.

In weekend tweets, he announced in all capital letters that he had won the agreement to benefit America's "great patriot farmers," and that U.S. sales would begin "immediately." There isn't any sign of that happening, however. Mexican officials denied that anything on agriculture was included in the deal on border security reached Friday to avert Trump's threatened tariffs. - MPR/Associated Press

Incidentally, Trump is in conniptions over media coverage of his latest “triumph.” Yet corporate media for the most part keeps coddling him. We’ll see if that keeps up into next year, when most people will actually start paying some attention to the 2020 election.

One more related item:  “As foreign investment in U.S. farmland grows, efforts to ban and limit the increase mount” - The New Food Economy