During seven years of the Morena federal government, agricultural, forestry, and agroindustrial producers have seen a decline in institutional support, marketing prices, financing, technical assistance, and the promotion of peasant organizations in general.

According to statements by farmer and peasant leaders participating in the three-day strike, this is the result of this government's decision to abandon the food production sector to its fate, without considering that the people necessarily need increasing quantities of corn, beans, rice, wheat, vegetables, legumes, fruit, meat, and milk, among other foodstuffs.

Similarly, they pointed out that Mexico is increasingly losing self-sufficiency in basic grains, particularly corn, rice, and wheat. These schemes have opened the borders to imports of these basic grains, giving preference to corn imports, of which most Mexicans who consume the grain, through tortillas, are unaware whether they are products of genetically modified varieties.

Under these conditions, the beneficiaries are North American and Canadian farmers who, from harvesting six or seven tons more than ten years ago, now yield between 14 and 16 tons per hectare.

In an unprecedented action, agricultural producers from 20 states across the country joined the three-day national strike last Tuesday to protest the federal government's neglect of the Mexican countryside and to defend peasant dignity. This strike is a demand for fair prices for white corn. This just protest by producers will surely evolve into regional and national movements, uniting states such as Sinaloa, Sonora, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Jalisco, the State of Mexico, and others, reaching a total of 20 states.

The protesters denounce the elimination by federal institutions of strategic subsidies, the sustained reduction of the primary sector budget, and the disappearance of agricultural and livestock support programs. Added to this is the lack of adequate guaranteed prices, rising diesel prices, and prolonged drought in key regions such as Sinaloa, Sonora, Jalisco, Veracruz, Chihuahua, and Durango. The impact of violence in producing areas has forced many commercial and rural producers to abandon their land or rent it without the possibility of cultivation.

In contrast, in countries such as the United States, Brazil, and Ukraine, producers receive credit and subsidies that allow them to compete in the international market, while Mexican farmers face adverse conditions that jeopardize food self-sufficiency. Recent data indicate that, in the last decade, national corn production fell 4%, while imports increased 78.4%, generating minimal profit margins and an average deficit of $3,270 pesos per hectare.

Mexican producers demand fair guaranteed prices for basic grains. In the case of white corn, the price has supposedly been set at $7,200.00 per ton, compared to the current $5,000 at which their crops are sold. They also warn that the continued existence of basic grains within the USMCA and the fixed prices on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange seriously harm the rural economy and the country's food sovereignty, given the volatility of US trade.

An additional point is that much of Mexico's agricultural land is cultivated with agricultural machinery, which represents a high cost in itself, along with the rising cost of fuel and spare parts. This is due to the lack of support from the Mexican government for the breeding of draft animals. Animal traction has practically disappeared from almost the entire Mexican countryside: teams of horses, mules, and donkeys are very few. They appear to be on the verge of extinction.

Due to the urgency of the situation, farmers have refused to hold dialogue tables prior to the mobilization, stating that the protest is necessary to keep public attention on the agricultural crisis. State and federal authorities continue to communicate with the protesters to clear roads and ensure road safety, although the blockades and marches are expected to continue in the coming weeks unless there is a response from federal government institutions.

The call is clear: a serious, broad, and inclusive debate is required on the future of the Mexican agricultural sector, an internal review of the USMCA, and the development of public policies that dignify and strengthen the national agricultural sector.