9�SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2025�ABASTO.COM MEXICAN INDUSTRY VITAL TO U.S. SUPPLY Dante Galeazzi, president of the Texas Internatio- nal Produce Association, reminded that Mexico su- pplies 70% of the fresh to- matoes consumed in the U.S. “Eliminating that volume destabilizes the market,” Galeazzi said, citing a Texas A&M study that estima- tes the economic impact at $8.3 billion. Te FPAA added that Mexican varieties like Roma, grape, and vine to- matoes are irreplaceable by domestic U.S. production. COMMERCE DEPARTMENT DEFENDS MOVE Te Commerce Department defended the cancellation under Section XI.B of the agreement, which allows termination with 90 days’ notice. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said, “Mexico remains an ally, but our farmers can’t wait any longer.” The Department’s En- forcement and Complian- ce office will strictly apply the antidumping duty on Mexican tomatoes. Robert Guenther, vice president of the Florida Tomato Exchange — the group leading the campaign against Mexican tomatoes — said the Commerce De- partment’s decision “rea- frms fair and competitive trade, upholds the rule of law, and restores the in- tegrity of our agricultural markets.” “While it was originally intended to combat un- fair trade, the Suspension Agreement has repeatedly failed to protect U.S. toma- to producers from unfairly priced Mexican imports,” Guenther added. According to the Florida Tomato Exchange, the mar- ket share of U.S. producers fell from 80% in 1994 to just 30% today. MEXICO TO PURSUE NEW DEAL Mexico signaled it will push for a new agreement to sus- pend the tarif, as it did in 2019 after bilateral nego- tiations. “Te country has always found a solution to these disputes,” the ofcial state- ment said. “Reason and the quality of our product will prevail.”