Martín Lim, a Sinaloa-based producer and member of Campesinos Unidos (United Farmers), confirmed that farmers from the state would be present at the planned takeover of customs offices, which has been postponed.
Nationwide, farmers have announced a mobilization to occupy customs offices along the country’s northern border, which has been postponed to a date yet to be determined. Sinaloa producers would be present in the states of Baja California and Sonora, according to Martín Lim, a producer from the Culiacán Valley and an activist for improving conditions in the region’s agricultural sector.
“We Sinaloa producers will have a presence. The contingent won’t be as large now; the situation has changed because we’re in other states. We would go to Sonora and Baja California, and there we would demonstrate at the customs offices. If there isn’t a favorable response to the farmers’ demands, what we’re going to do is advocate for not planting corn this season,” the producer said in an interview with Espejo.
Lim assures that the takeover will not be limited to a demonstration, as was the case at some toll booths that were seized in Sinaloa and other states last week, where traffic was allowed to continue. At the customs checkpoints, the passage of goods by land would be blocked.
“Whoever stays inside, stays inside. And from there to here, nobody gets through,” he declares.
The takeover of the customs checkpoints is organized by the National Front for the Rescue of the Mexican Countryside, a group of agricultural collectives from across Mexico seeking better conditions for their work. Currently, their main demand is a guarantee of a fair price for producers per ton of corn.
Baltazar Valdez, leader of United Farmers of Sinaloa, explained to Espejo that the mobilization on the northern border has been postponed until a date to be determined, although next week is tentatively being considered.
This change of plans, he explains, stems from reports in the U.S. press that the United States may be preparing a military mission to Mexico.
This refers to a report published on Monday, November 3, by NBC News, which, citing current and former U.S. government officials, claims that President Donald Trump’s administration has begun planning to send troops and intelligence personnel into Mexican territory to combat the cartels that traffic drugs across the border.
The report was addressed by Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum this Tuesday, November 4, during her morning press conference. The mayor denied and dismissed the information. “It’s not going to happen,” she said.
However, the National Front for the Rescue of the Mexican Countryside has already decided to postpone its planned mobilization to seize customs offices, anticipating being involved in any incident related to the aforementioned threat.
Why do farmers want to seize the customs offices?
One of the main complaints of the Mexican agricultural sector is the poor market conditions for corn, with very low prices for producers that do not cover production costs.
In addition to the lack of support, this situation is caused by the heavy reliance on imported corn, which floods the domestic market and drives down prices. Most of this imported corn comes from the United States, Brazil, and Argentina.
Industrial companies like Gruma and Minsa are the main customers of imported corn in Mexico, purchasing it because it is cheaper. This is despite the lower nutritional quality claimed by domestic producers.
By closing the border between the two countries, they intend to put pressure on the federal government to address their demands.
Source: revistaespejo
