The managing director of the Grupo Consultor de Mercados Agrícolas (GCMA), Juan Carlos Anaya said that Mexican producers have signed letters of commitment to buy approximately 400,000 tons of white corn from South Africa. An action that, according to him, is motivated by the elimination of the customs tariff on this and other products put in place by the government a few weeks ago.

The import of South African white corn into Mexico was suspended in 2011 when then-president Enrique Peña Nieto introduced a 20% tariff on the product. According to Juan Carlos Anaya, the first shipment of 40,000 tons of grain arrived in Mexico in October while four other shipments are already planned for November, January and February, for a total of 176,000 tons.

Due to the drop in domestic production in recent days, more than half of the Mexican population's consumption of staple grains depends on imports. But as far as white corn is concerned, imports are very low since Mexico is self-sufficient. The government also removed tariffs on 66 products, including white corn, in early May.