The impact Mexican fruits and vegetables have on both the Texas and the U.S. economies can’t be understated.

According to research released in February from Texas A&M University, U.S. imports of fruits, vegetables and nuts from Mexico totaled $18.7 billion during 2022.

About 55% of those imports entered the U.S. through Texas land ports, with Pharr crossing 197,253 truckloads and Laredo crossing 75,409 truckloads.

Produce imports from Mexico are expected to grow over the next seven years, with much of this growth entering through Texas.

Shipments through Texas had an estimated $25.5 billion economic impact and provided nearly 169,000 direct jobs in the state.

That figure is expected to reach $24 billion by 2030, said Dr. Luis Ribera, professor, extension economist and director of the Center for North American Studies at Texas A&M’s AgriLife Extension.

Ribera was co-author of the report along with Landyn Young, Dan Hanselka and Dean McCorkle.

The research is important, Ribera said, because it shows that, “while imports have sort of a negative connation because they’re not produced in the U.S., they do bring a lot of impact to the U.S. economy.”

That’s in addition to providing consumers with the year-round supply of fruits and vegetables they want.

“Just because they’re not produced in the U.S. doesn’t mean they don’t impact the economy in the U.S. in a positive way,” he said.

“The report from Texas A&M not only shows the growing economic value of fresh produce imports, it also shows that Mexico’s fresh produce industry has gained significant traction in the U.S. marketplace and will continue to do so into the future,” said Dante Galeazzi, CEO and president of the Texas International Produce Association.

The report also shows that the industry should continue to look at regions like South Texas as “critical to their supply mix,” he said.

“Not only is Texas one of the few places you can mix imports and domestics in a compact region, but importantly, it shows that areas like these will continue growing so investing in partnerships and supplier visits now will give those buyers a competitive edge when their suppliers are even larger players in five 10 years.”

Texas, especially the Rio Grande Valley, plays a vital role in the import process, according to the report.

Shipments through Texas had an estimated $25.5 billion economic impact and provided nearly 169,000 direct jobs in the state.

That figure is expected to grow to $34.1 billion by 2030.

Ribera said the research highlights the valuable role produce brokers and importers and the Texas International Produce Association play in terms of the money and jobs imports generate in the U.S.

“The reason we have imports of fruits and vegetables is because there is a demand,” he said.

“Either you supply the demand through domestic production, which we do when we have the windows of production, or you have to import them.”

Texas needs to continue to support the industry by backing projects like new roads and cold storage facilities, he said.

“If Texas isn’t investing in infrastructure at the ports of entry to get the produce as quickly as possible from a producer in Mexico to the consumer in the U.S., we’ll have less of that product or at a higher price,” he said.

“This is very important for fresh produce because every extra day the produce is on a truck, the quality goes down by about 10%.”

He was optimistic that the state will continue to invest in the import industry.

“By 2030, Texas is estimated to account for 56.4% of all U.S. produce imports from Mexico,” the report said.

That increase will largely be the result of expanding infrastructure of trade services providers in the Rio Grande Valley.

Ribera expects the upward trend to continue as demand for fresh fruits and vegetables grows in the U.S. and consumers pursue more nutritious diets.

Nonetheless, Mexican producers believe they will continue to thrive, Ribera said.

“They have cheaper labor than the U.S., they have good growing weather, and proximity to the U.S. market is a big advantage,” he said.

“Mexican growers believe they can compete, and they have the largest market in the world north of them, so that’s a big incentive.”

By TOM BURFIELD 

Source: https://www.thepacker.com