Mexico
After an ugly pullback in the cattle market futures are trying to recover according to Scott Varilek of Kooima Kooima Varilek as cash strength is returning in the feeder cattle market.
Mexico’s Agriculture Minister, Julio Berdegué, is scheduled to travel to Washington next week to discuss reopening the border.
NWS traps will be deployed at the Texas border and ports to protect the livestock industry.
With New World screwworm within 70 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border, the livestock industry is on high alert. USDA continues to fight the northward spread of the parasite while debate continues on the border closure.
The next step to battling NWS is using swormlure, a synthetic bait designed to attract adult screwworm flies, combined with an insecticide to combat the pest.
On Saturday, President Trump threatened to impose 30% tariffs on Mexico and the European Union starting on August 1. The announcement came after a string of new tariff threats last week.
Secretary Rollins takes decisive action and shuts down cattle, bison and equine trade due to further northward spread of the devastating pest in Mexico.
Following a New World screwworm assessment by USDA staff in Mexico and ongoing conversations between Secretary Rollins and the Mexican Secretary of Agriculture, USDA will start reopening the ports for cattle, bison and equine.
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announces plans to reopen Moore Air Base in Texas as a New World screwworm sterile fly distribution facility. Long-term production is anticipated to be 300 million sterile flies per week.
NCBA’s Woodall says the goal is complete eradication — not just from the U.S., but from Mexico and Central America, ultimately pushing the fly back to its original range in South America.
USDA will invest in the renovation of an existing fruit fly production facility in Metapa, Mexico, to further the long-term goal of eradicating New World screwworm.
In parts of Central America, illegal ranching on protected lands has become a front for drug trafficking and money laundering. The ripple effects of this trend now threaten U.S. cattle producers with the resurgence of a deadly livestock pest.
NCBA applauds Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins’ aggressive efforts to suspend Mexican cattle, horse and bison imports, saying Mexico’s corruption and mismanagement has caused the pest to spread closer to the U.S.
As trade negotiations continue with China and Mexico, USMEF’s Dan Halstrom and Illinois pig farmer Chad Leman share their perspectives on what’s ahead for pork and beef producers.
Mexico has committed to eliminate restrictions on USDA aircraft and waive customs duties on eradication equipment aiding in the response to the spread of New World Screwworm (NWS).
U.S. officials and lawmakers have complained that Mexico’s failure to meet its obligations under the treaty is harming Texas farmers. Mexico has argued that it is under drought conditions that have strained the country’s water resources.
Mexico has until April 30 to follow protocol to stop the spread of the pest and eliminate current restrictions slowing eradication.
The majority of respondents in the March Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor agree the U.S. is currently in a trade war, but who wins? Ag economists say it’s not the U.S., Canada or Mexico but rather Brazil that could come out on top.
Tariff whiplash is consuming the commodity markets — and the possible impact is stirring up quite the debate. At present, President Trump says he’s sticking to his plan to impose additional tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China starting April 2.
Mexico’s president said on Tuesday the country will respond to U.S. tariffs with a 25% tariff on U.S. goods, but she will hold off announcing the targeted products until Sunday.
While Canada and Mexico have taken measures to address U.S. concerns, China’s response remains muted, potentially setting the stage for further trade tensions.
President Trump says tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico will now take effect on April 2, 2025.
The look at corn and soybean acreage under current conditions will be among the key focal points during the event, but it will also be key to see how USDA paints an export outlook with so much uncertainty surrounding tariffs and trade.
Trump said Monday that his planned 25% tariffs on all Mexican and Canadian exports to the U.S. “are going ahead on time, on schedule,” meaning the duties would take effect on March 4 at the conclusion of a one-month suspension.
APHIS emphasizes new protocols in place to monitor for the pest before cattle enter the U.S.
Kevin Good, Vice President of Industry Relations and Analysis with CattleFax, says the herd is still shrinking and so are slaughter levels and that will mean more record prices in 2025.
Just hours before the tariffs were set to take effect, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the news on X, and President Donald Trump later confirmed. Mexico is the top destination for U.S. ag exports. The announcement from Canada came later on Monday.
Following President Trump’s decision to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, Canada announced its own 25% tariffs on $155 billion worth of U.S. imports. Mexico also announced its own retaliatory measures, but no specifics were unveiled as of Sunday morning.
U.S. farmers and various trade groups are very apprehensive about not only the potential negative impacts of tariffs on the U.S. ag sector, but what they do to garner new trade agreements.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump justified the tariffs as a response to what he described as excessive migration, drug trafficking and unfair trade practices. While he suggested the tariff rate could further increase, he indicated a decision on whether oil imports would be exempt would come soon.