Agrifood Products: Mexico’s Foreign Trade

The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) published an analysis of Mexico‘s foreign trade of agrifood products in 2022, highlighting the dynamism of these sales.

The balance of agri-food products is made up of two types of goods: agricultural goods (unprocessed products) and manufactured food, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and tobacco products (processed products).

Between 2015 and 2022, a greater weight of these types of products has been observed within the total value of exports and imports of the country.

In the case of exports, their share increased from 7.0% in 2015 to 9.3% in 2020, and then declined to 8.6% in 2022.

Unprocessed goods in the agri-food balance in 2022 accounted for 3.7% and 3.6% of total exports and imports, respectively. On the other hand, the share of shipments and purchases of processed goods in the total was 4.9% and 3.6%, in that order.

The greater weight observed in 2020 was associated both with the upward trend in this type of exports, as well as with the transitory decrease observed in the rest of the manufacturing exports as a result of the disruptions caused by the pandemic.

In the case of imports, their weight went from 6.4% in 2015 to 7.2% in 2022.

Agrifood Products

Banxico also indicated that the sustained increase in the nominal value of agrifood goods exports since 2015 is explained by an upward trend in exports of unprocessed goods and, more markedly, processed goods.

In addition, in its analysis, Banxico showed the participation of the main export products of unprocessed and processed goods.

Among the former, products such as avocados, fresh vegetables, tomatoes and tomato, which together accounted for about 45% of the value of exports of unprocessed food goods in 2022, stand out.

Among exports of processed goods, beer, spirits and liqueurs, and bakery products stood out, accounting for 45% of this type of exports.

For its part, the value of food imports remained at relatively stable levels between 2015 and 2020.

Then, a clear upward trend is observed, with a higher growth rate than the value of food exports.

This has been the result of higher imports of both processed and unprocessed goods.

Among unprocessed goods, corn, beans and wheat stand out, which are grains and cereals whose prices have been strongly affected by the pandemic and the conflict in Eastern Europe.

Among the main imported processed goods are meat and dairy products, which have also been affected by the two aforementioned events.