US Agribusiness ¨Migrates¨ to Mexico/ & Baja big time
March 31, 2008
Commerce News
US Agribusiness ¨Migrates¨ to Mexico
Confronted with the possibility of losing a labor force because of
immigration law crackdowns, some US growers are simply moving their
operations to places where workers abound. While the presence of US
agribusiness in Mexico is nothing new, Mexican authorities and farm
industry representatives say immigration controversies north of the border
are encouraging a fresh infusion of US investment in export crops.
¨In Baja California, 17 US enterprises associated with Mexican producers
are dedicated to the cultivation of horticultural products and vegetables¨
said Israel Camacho, undersecretary for Baja California´s state
agricultural promotion department.¨The Mexicans supply the land and water,
and the foreigners supply money, seed and other implements.(Foreigners)
are coming to Mexico because of cheap labor, and more are going to come.¨
Baja California farmworkers, many of whom hail from the states of Guerrero
and Oaxaca in southern Mexico, earn on average $12 per day, officials
said.
According to figures released by Mexico´s Economy Ministry, annual foreign
investment in the country´s agricultural sector shot up from less than $20
million in 2005 to $62.3 million in 2007. Ninety-five percent of the new
money came from the US. Sonora, Baja California, Jalisco, Guanajuato,
Queretaro, and Sinaloa were the states which received the bulk of the
investment. Firms doing business in Mexico included Bill Packer, Capurro
Co., Sahara, Veg Packer, and Driscoll, among others. Trendy Chinese
vegetables represent a hot segment of the new export business; farms
specializing in Asian-origin produce are at work in the states of Sinaloa
and Nayarit.
No information was immediately available on the amount of Mexican land
that is being converted for export crops, but Sinaloa tomato farmer
Eduardo de la Vega, said the arrival of more US capital was increasing
land values.
In the US, meanwhile, the Bush Administration is responding to growers'
concerns that tougher immigration law enforcement measures will deprive
them of workers. Late last week, the US Citizenship and Immigration
Services division of the Department of Homeland Security announced it was
extending a public comment period on proposals to facilitate the increased
use of the existing H-2A guestworker program. According to a press
statement, formal notice of an expanded public comment period lasting
until April 14 was expected to be published in the March 31 edition of the
Federal Register.
Sources: Tribuna de la Bahia/Agencia Reforma, March 31, 2008. Article by
Moises Ramirez. US Citizenship and Immigration Services, March 28,
2008. Press update.
Frontera NorteSur (FNS): on-line, U.S.-Mexico border news
Center for Latin American and Border Studies
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, New Mexico
My smidgen of a claim to fame is that I have had so many really good friends. By Bernie Swaim December 2007
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