Mexico Vows to Keep Tomato Exports After U.S. Imposes 17% Duty

The U.S. Department of Commerce has withdrawn from a 1996 suspension agreement that had shielded Mexican tomato shipments from antidumping duties and instead imposed a 17.09% levy on the produce, effective 14 July. The move ends nearly three decades of managed trade in a market valued at about $3 billion a year. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum condemned the duty as “unjust” and said exports would continue because the U.S. market lacks a viable substitute for the fruit. Sheinbaum, backed by the Ministries of Economy and Agriculture, warned that Mexico could take further action if no new arrangement is reached with Washington before an informal 1 August negotiating deadline. Mexico is also drafting support measures for growers. Mexican growers supply roughly two-thirds of the tomatoes eaten in the United States—about 1.8 million tonnes, or 4.3 billion pounds, annually. Fideicomisos Instituidos en Relación con la Agricultura (FIRA) estimates the tariff will trim shipments but not cripple the industry, with much of the added cost likely borne by U.S. consumers. While the Florida Tomato Exchange and other U.S. producers welcomed the duty, trade groups in border states warned of job losses and higher grocery prices.