Extortion increases the cost of food for the country’s households by up to 20%: CNA

Insecurity in the countryside, particularly extortion by organized crime, raises between 10 and 20 percent the final price of food that reaches the tables of Mexican families, said Jorge Esteve, president of the National Agricultural Council (CNA).

“Extortion, depending on the area and the product, makes it reach the consumer 10 or 20 percent more expensive,” explained Esteve, who explained that the phenomenon is no longer limited to traditionally conflictive regions such as Michoacán.

In a meeting with the media, the manager pointed out that criminal groups have diversified their modalities: they charge per hectare, per ton produced, for transportation or even force producers to buy inputs from suppliers designated by them.

Esteve stressed that the problem was aggravated by the “neglect of security” in recent years and that today it is “quite widespread.” “Before they were isolated points; today we find new forms of extortion that we did not hear about eight or 10 years ago,” he indicated.

However, the president of the ANC pointed out that insecurity is an issue that is already being addressed by the current government, although he emphasized that it is not the only factor that hits the sector, given that since the previous six-year term the field was “dismantled.”

He recalled that in the last government, instruments such as the National Development Finance, price coverage and contract farming were eliminated.

“Things as logical as contract farming were removed, where the parties agree, before planting, on the price at which they will buy.”

He added that agricultural insurance in Mexico costs four times more than in the United States and that cuts to support programs have left the sector without a safety net.

“If today I stop going to the doctor and stop taking care of myself, maybe five years later I will have a heart attack,” Esteve compared and then added that “six years have passed and we already see the consequences: the screwworm, diseases in citrus and the collapse of grains.”

Regarding the latter, the leader emphasized that the sowing of grains cannot hold up. “It’s not business.” He recognized that agricultural growth in 2024, estimated at about 4 percent, is due exclusively to fruits and vegetables, especially avocado, berries and citrus, which do support expensive labor and external pressures. “If it weren’t for that field, Mexico would be in a clear recession,” he admitted.