Mexico is the world’s leading exporter of organic products, with some 90 per cent of production destined for overseas markets, according to the country’s Secretary of Agriculture Alberto Cárdenas Jiménez.
Opening the seventh Organics Expo in Mexico City yesterday (Tuesday 25 November), Mr Cárdenas said organic agriculture is a “priority” for the Mexican Ministry of Agriculture (SAGARPA) given the “growth” and “extraordinary potential” of the global organic market, estimated to be worth in excess of US$40bn.
“The Mexican government has passed an Organic Production Law and in the next few weeks the corresponding regulations will be published,” Mr Cárdenas explained. “The new ruling sets the conditions under which products must be grown in order to achieve organic status, such as the use of raw materials over chemicals.”
A specialised certification system has also been created to develop the capacity and specialisation of growers, associations and auditors, as well as promote the production and export of organic products.
Mr Cárdenas said the government has also allocated some 20m pesos (US$1.5m) to support 60 organic projects in 14 states across Mexico.
Planted area with organic products in Mexico has risen from 30,000ha to an impressive 300,000ha in the last decade, according to SAGARPA, with an estimated 88,000 families are involved in the production of organic crops.
Mexico’s organic export range comprises mainly coffee, honey, cacao, avocados, mangoes, pineapples, bananas, oranges, cactus leaf, sesame, vanilla, milk and milk-derived products, eggs, medicinal plants, maize, juice, biscuits and jam.
Consumption of organic products is concentrated primarily in 10 countries including Germany, France, the UK, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Austria and the US.
