An Overview of Supply Guarantees

During President López Obrador’s Wednesday morning press conference, Minister of Economy Graciela Márquez Colín assured the public that Mexico has up to 100 days’ worth of strategic reserves that can guarantee supply of basic food basket products through its Liconsa and Diconsa warehouses. According to El Universal, Márquez said supply can also be guaranteed thanks to a distribution network composed of 300 warehouses, along with 26,000 stores and purchase points all over the country. 

This appeared to motivate other government officials to also remark on their capacity to guarantee supply. First came the Ministry of Agriculture And Rural Development (SADER), that guaranteed to El Heraldo de México the supply of food products to the entire country despite the COVID-19 crisis, assuring the public that stocks are currently sufficient and that primary and agro-industrial productivity and distribution would continue. The same press release also advised strongly against “massive panic purchases” which could lead to logistical issues arising in the aforementioned distribution networks and also speculative price increases. SADER also took advantage of this space to further assure the population that there is no evidence to support the notion that Mexico’s food products or their packaging could in any way carry or transmit COVID-19.  

Another participant in this trend was IMSS’ head Zoé Robledo, who guaranteed the availability of medical supplies throughout the COVID-19 crisis, according to a report by 24 Horas. Robledo also made it clear that all procured supplies will be guarded by the Mexican army.

It was not just state officials but also industry representatives who communicated their own supply guarantees. For example, El Universal reports that ONEXPO leader Roberto Díaz de León guaranteed the national supply and availability of gasoline and diesel, but also advised against panic purchases that could put said guarantee at risk.