How does it feel to grow organic produce in Mexico? It’s not something we normally talk about a lot. But if you buy organic products here in the United States, it is a question you should ask yourself. This is because foods grown in Mexico often make it to grocery stores in the US, and many of them proudly display the USDA organic label.
As I revealed in my previous AGDAILY article, imported products can use the USDA organic label. It is generally allowed when the importing country has an organic certification equivalent to the USDA program. The details of how and when are usually contained in trade agreements. And it varies from country to country. For example, the European Union has a program equivalent to that of the US Therefore, organic imports from the EU can use the USDA label.
But Mexico has a special relationship with the States. Like our neighbor to the south, its geographic proximity and year-round warm climate make it an ideal business partner. In 2016, the United States bought $ 23 billion in agricultural products from Mexico. The most popular items, which account for 75 percent of those imports, include vegetables, fruits, wine, beer, and snacks.
Unfortunately, organic imports are not so closely tracked. But we know that the US imported at least $ 278 million worth of organics in 2017. However, the actual amount is likely much higher, considering that only select organics are counted.
So how do we know that these things are really organic? Food grown in Mexico often comes with the stigma that it is a free system with no regulations. This is probably an unfair assumption (unfortunately, I have never visited a farm in Mexico). But understandably, people are skeptical of imported organic products from the country.
It turns out that the USDA has many agents living in Mexico for this very purpose. The USDA currently has about two dozen USDA-accredited certifiers operating in Mexico (is it time for a career change?). And there are more than 1,600 USDA certified organic operations in the country. So, like American farmers seeking organic certification, Mexican farmers must follow the same rules and regulations.
Mexico implemented its own Organic Products Law and regulations in April 2017. Therefore, all organic products sold in the country now have to be certified by Mexican officials or certified under an equivalent standard in another country. That’s important to American farmers, who export $ 133 million worth of organic produce. And, as I explained before, it’s also one step closer to how most organic trade deals work.
But the USDA and Mexico’s National Service for Animal and Plant Health, Food Safety and Quality (SENASICA) are still evaluating whether the organic standard in the other country is sufficiently equivalent. Therefore, Mexican farmers must still go through USDA certification to export their products. It will be interesting to see if this changes in the coming years. Organic produce grown to the Mexican organic standard may eventually be shipped to the US with the USDA organic label.
It is true that I was surprised to learn that USDA certifiers operate in Mexico. In general, that is not the perception that people have about the food of Mexico. But it makes sense. Mexico is a great trading partner, especially when most of our country is too cold to grow in winter. We depend on our neighbor to the south for imported food to supplement what we grow. It is good to know that it is done correctly. I’d be interested to see if Mexico’s own certification takes off in the future.
So it might be somewhat surprising that foods grown in Mexico can be USDA certified organic. But Mexican farmers are certified by USDA agents operating within our southern neighbor. And those farmers are subject to the same regulations and restrictions as US organic farmers.
Amanda Zaluckyj blogs under the name The Farmer’s Daughter USA. Their goal is to promote farmers and address the misinformation that is swirling around the US food industry.