SADER Sets Corn Marketing Plan for Sinaloa’s 2025–2026 Harvest

Mexico’s federal government and the state of Sinaloa are coordinating with producers and industry buyers to stabilize the corn market for the 2025–2026 harvest through advance purchasing agreements, a base price framework and the creation of a national corn commercialization system. The measures seek to mitigate the impact of falling international grain prices while securing market access for an estimated 4Mt harvest in one of Mexico’s main white corn producing regions. The initiative affects producers, tortilla and livestock feed supply chains, and major flour processors such as Gruma and Grupo Minsa amid increased regulatory scrutiny and market adjustments.

Representatives of the federal government and the state of Sinaloa met to establish the foundations of the marketing strategy for corn from the 2025–2026 agricultural cycle, with the aim of providing certainty to producers ahead of the start of the harvest period.

The meeting, led by the the Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development (SADER) and the Government of the state of Sinaloa, supported, through a dialogue roundtable, the agreement reached between producers in the state and traders for the purchase of an initial quota of 1.1Mt of corn.

A standardized base price of US$65/t was established for the flour, nixtamal, livestock feed, and grain storage industries. In addition, the parties agreed to implement a comprehensive marketing plan covering the entire 2025–2026 Autumn–Winter production cycle. The start of advance purchasing was also agreed upon, with the aim of beginning on Friday, March 13 in Sinaloa, involving the flour industry, the livestock sector, and warehouse operators.

Additionally, a joint working group will be established to design the first Production and Marketing Management System for corn. Among other key points, the system will address the organization of financing, hedging instruments, input procurement, transportation, and commercialization. During the meeting, participants also analyzed several proposals aimed at ensuring that corn produced in Sinaloa can be placed in the domestic market, as well as mechanisms to strengthen commercial certainty for producers during the current agricultural cycle.

Ismael Bello, Sinaloa’s Minister of Agriculture, reaffirmed the commitment of Governor Rubén Rocha Moya to work in coordination with the federal government and producers to achieve an orderly commercialization process with fair conditions for the state’s agricultural sector. He also emphasized that open dialogue with federal authorities and producers is essential to building solutions that help protect the profitability of farming in Sinaloa.

Carlos Morales, Private Assistant to President Claudia Sheinbaum, reiterated the Mexican government’s commitment to strengthening market and commercialization conditions for Mexican farmers. “What we are discussing is the future of people. This is about a comprehensive strategy,” the official said.

Leonel Cota, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, welcomed the willingness of business leaders to engage in dialogue and their efforts to build agreements. “We will continue working with the rest of the business sector, and we greatly appreciate those present here for standing with us and showing solidarity,” he said.

The corn-buying industry was represented by executives from the National Chamber of Industrial Corn (CANAMI) and from the country’s leading corn flour companies, who reaffirmed their commitment to purchasing domestically harvested corn before resorting to imports. In this regard, major industrial corn traders have faced increasing pressure over the past year to implement changes that benefit workers across Mexico’s corn supply chain.

Gruma, the leading company in industrial corn processing, will be required to eliminate all exclusivity or minimum consumption obligations previously imposed on tortilla shop owners, as well as the penalties linked to those clauses. This ruling comes after the National Antitrust Commission (CNA) concluded a competition proceeding against the company and determined that its contractual practices restricted competition in the corn flour market, where Gruma holds roughly 70% of the market share.

As a result of these developments, the company’s shares fell 7.19% in February, closing at MX$315.28. This marked their steepest decline since October 7, 2024, when they dropped 7.5%. The decrease wiped out more than MX$8.3 billion in market capitalization.

Moreover, amid the pressure faced by corn producers in Mexico due to declining international prices, Grupo Minsa, the country’s second-largest corn flour producer, reported that it pays a premium of around MX$1,000/t (US$55.9/t) for white corn compared to the international benchmark, with the aim of supporting domestic production.

The company clarified that it prioritizes the consumption of Mexican corn and has only resorted to imports during periods of regional shortages to ensure supply. It noted that over the past six years it has purchased 4 million tons of domestic corn, while imports totaled 69,815t, equivalent to less than 4% of its total purchases.

Regarding producers’ views on the agreements reached, Agustín Espinoza, Secretary General, of the Coordinating Organization of Sinaloa’s Farmers Union (COUC), said the understanding achieved among the different actors in the sector opens an initial pathway to address the uncertainty created by the decline in international grain prices.

However, he warned that the agreement should be seen as a first step in addressing the sector’s challenges rather than as a definitive solution. Furthermore, the producer noted that corn cultivation has strategic importance for Sinaloa, as the state is one of the country’s main suppliers of white corn. For this reason, he stressed the importance of the industry committing to prioritize the purchase of domestic production before resorting to imports.

Espinoza explained that one of the main challenges will be ensuring that the plan allows the entire projected harvest in Sinaloa, estimated at close to 4Mt, to be successfully placed in the market, and that the benefits reach more than 25,000 producers, particularly smaller-scale farmers. Finally, he reiterated that the farmers’ organization will continue participating in dialogue spaces with authorities and industry in order to strengthen the profitability of corn cultivation and contribute to the country’s food security.

The agreement reached with producers in Sinaloa comes nearly five months after a similar deal was struck with farmers in the Bajio region. That arrangement included direct financial support of MX$950/t of corn, along with preferential-rate loans and crop insurance coverage. In this regard, SADER reported last week that it has already delivered MX$1.1 billion (US$65.4 million) in payments to white corn producers. Meanwhile, yellow corn producers in the states of Chihuahua and Tamaulipas continue to receive support payments of MX$750/t of grain corresponding to the Spring–Summer 2025 cycle.