The battle over genetically modified (GM) corn continues, as Mexico announced it is standing firm in its proposal to ban imports of American GM corn by 2024. On Tuesday, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador shut down negotiations with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, telling reporters, “Between health and commercialism, we opted for health.”

Mexican corn imports from the United States have steadily increased over the last decade, with August 2022 imports worth over $500,000. While Mexico produces almost entirely white corn for human consumption, 95% of its annual 16 million tons of corn imports are in the form of more-common U.S. yellow corn.  

On December 31, 2020, President López Obrador issued a presidential decree that called for phasing out genetically modified maize variations in favor of Mexico’s native maize varieties. Over the past decade, Mexico’s corn imports have doubled, much of which is grown in the U.S. to feed Mexican livestock. President López Obrador has made it clear, however, that his decree only applies to corn grown for human consumption, not for livestock. 

Supporters say that an excess of American-grown GM corn could contaminate the native maize that Mexican citizens have been thriving off of for centuries. They also argue that not enough scientific research has been done on GM foods to deem them safe enough for consumption. The United States refutes these arguments and claims that the corn ban would cause “both massive economic losses for Mexico’s agricultural industries and citizens, as well as place an unjustified burden on U.S. farmers.” 

Vilsack acknowledged that the United States has “deep concerns” over the potential GM corn ban, and threatened that the U.S. may take legal action under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). “We must find a way forward soon and I emphasized in no uncertain terms that — absent acceptable resolution of the issue — the US government would be forced to consider all options, including taking formal steps to enforce our legal rights under the USMCA,” Vilsack stated. 

“We hope to reach an agreement, but if that agreement is not reached… let them go to a tribunal,” Lopez Obrador said.

The United States and Mexico are also in a debate over an alleged Mexican violation of the USMCA regarding energy policy. A U.S. Trade Representative complaint says a change to Mexican law last year puts more power into the hands of the Mexican Federal Electricity Commission, thereby placing energy sold by private companies, including cleaner energy from solar or wind, at a disadvantage. The U.S. also accused Mexico of suspending or delaying permits for private energy companies ready to sell. However, the complaint has gone mostly undiscussed, and in the most recent meetings between U.S. and Mexican trade officials, they have chosen not to tackle the issue.