Editorial: Mexican Freshness at Risk
By: Georgius Gotsis
Veggies From Mexico CEO
We are a couple of days away from the possibility of Trump imposing tariffs to Mexico, and the fruit and vegetable sector could be one of the most affected. Currently, we export about eighteen billion dollars in fruits and vegetables into the US, tomato and avocado being the ones with the largest volume and value. A 10% tariff would represent $1.8 billion dollars in additional costs for our sector. Would the consumer ultimately pay this cost? Probably yes, in the short term. However, it would make us less competitive, and states such as Florida would take the place of our tomatoes; countries such as Honduras would take the place of our cucumbers; Colombia and Peru would take the place of our avocados. We can already see colored peppers from Holland, Israel and Spain competing with our own in the US. Our industry is in danger in the medium to long term, just like water going in through a small hole that slowly sinks the ship.
Regardless of tariffs, as I mentioned, competition is already happening. Let us not underestimate countries such as Peru, which 10 years ago exported less than $40 million dollars of avocados into the US and today exports over $200 million dollars. Holland or Israel, which despite the distance have the courage to send peppers and tomatoes by plane. And yes, we can ask ourselves: Why would a North American consumer pays more for something produced in those far away countries? The answer is simple: freshness. A consumer in New York City could get a yellow pepper from Holland faster and fresher than a pepper from Sinaloa. This is exactly one of the main challenges we must in Mexico as an industry: logistics. How can we get to our destination faster and at a lower cost? How can we benefit more from the $195 billion dollars the North American horticultural industry is worth? Where in the chain can we get involved?
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If we talk about diversifying and expanding into other markets, logistics is also essential to compete. For example, if we want to send a container from Culiacan to Puaan, in Korea (18 days), the cost would be approximately $5,800 dollars: Culiacan-Manzanillo (943 km) costs $3,200 dollars and Manzanillo-Puaan (12,000 km) costs $2,600 dollars. These costs and distances are already telling us so much about the problem. To face the competition, it is imperative to work on our logistics, on having more and better options for North America and the world.
Another powerful tool that we cannot ignore is promoting of our fruits and vegetables. Without doubt, the quality and flavor of our tomatoes are better than those from Florida. We have more and better avocados than California, and this is exactly a clear example of how we can compete with the right marketing. “Avocados From Mexico” is the main promoter of avocado consumption in the US. We see their ads and commercials everywhere, including the Superbowl. The million-dollar investments in advertising have been greatly beneficial: in 2001, the average consumption in the US was two pounds per person; in 2023 it was already nine pounds. On the other hand, tomato consumption in 2001 was nineteen pounds per person; in 2023 it went up to 19.2 pounds. What if, instead of fighting the competition and spending money on lawyers, we could join forces and generate a campaign to increase the consumption of our vegetables?
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And of course, to compete, protect ourselves, and stand out we cannot put innovation aside: better technology, higher yields, better data use, better inputs, more taste, more nutrients, more sustainability and sustainable development, AI; prevention instead of correction and full market knowledge.
If you want to move forward, never look back.
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