Mexico Allocates MX$17.3 Billion to Boost Zacatecas Agriculture

The Mexican government plans to invest MX$17.266 billion (US$998 million) in Zacatecas agricultural sector in 2026 through a package of rural welfare, food production, and irrigation programs aimed at supporting small and medium-sized producers, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER).

The investment forms part of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s food sovereignty and rural development strategy and seeks to strengthen agricultural production, improve commercialization channels and modernize farming infrastructure in one of Mexico’s main bean-producing states.

SADER said the funding will support programs related to food production, irrigation, fertilizers, seeds, and social welfare while improving living conditions for rural families.

Among the largest allocations is MX$11.2 billion for the Sowing Life program, benefiting 399 participants across 147 agrarian communities. The government also earmarked MX$2.8 billion through Food for Well-Being for the collection of more than 107,000t of beans from the 2025 spring-summer cycle, benefiting 14,000 producers.

Additional funding includes MX$1.1 billion for the National Irrigation Technification Plan, MX$962 million for Production for Well-Being supporting 82,612 producers and MX$613 million for Fertilizers for Well-Being, which has already delivered inputs to 20,519 farmers growing priority crops.

The government also assigned MX$360 million to the Mexico Bean Self-Sufficiency Plan, MX$135 million to the Seed Program for Welfare and MX$129 million to Milk for Well-Being, benefiting 5,245 dairy producers and nearly 157,000 families with subsidized milk access.

SADER said the programs position Zacatecas as a priority state within Mexico’s food sovereignty policy and are intended to ensure the production of “healthy, safe and quality food” while improving rural welfare.

The announcement comes amid protests from bean producers in Zacatecas over changes to bean procurement prices under the Food for Well-Being program. The ministry said the state accounts for 56.4% of the national bean collection effort, with nearly 98,000t collected from 12,435 small producers, representing a social investment of more than MX$2.64 billion.

On May 1, 2026, new operating rules published in Mexico’s Official Gazette authorized the additional procurement of up to 10,000t of black and pinto beans in Zacatecas at MX$16,000/t. Under the updated rules, 1,588 producers have already delivered 7,365t currently in the collection process, according to SADER.

The ministry added that 441 producers linked to the protesting group previously benefited from the procurement of 1,951t of beans at the former price of MX$27,000/t, representing MX$52.7 million in social investment.

“Representatives of the group have refused to continue the process under the new price of MX$16,000/t and demand maintaining the previous scheme of MX$27,000/t,” the ministry said, adding that such conditions would “affect the equity of the program compared to thousands of small producers served under the same parameters.”

SADER said the federal government respects the right to protest and will continue operating the program with open doors for producers willing to participate under the current operating rules.