FARMERS ARE GETTING PLOWED UNDER

摘要

It was quite a parade. Farmers in Mexico recently marched hundreds of squealing pigs through La Piedad, a small town in Guanajuato state. The show of porcine heft was a protest against an expected avalanche of U.S. bacon, ham, and pork chops when import tariffs on a variety of farm products are eliminated next year under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Some U. S. pork cuts already cost just 27￠ a pound in Mexico, vs. $1.14 for domestic pork, and import prices will likely drop further. "If our situation doesn't change quickly, Mexico's 15,000 pork producers face complete collapse," says Carlos Ramayo, head of the Confederation of Mexican Pork Producers. Mexico and the U. S. are headed for a major food fight. Starting on Jan. 1, Mexico must scrap tariffs on a dozen key products, including rice, potatoes, pork, and chicken, that have enjoyed special protection under NAFTA. To Mexicans, agriculture's importance is not measured in dollars―in fact, the sector contributes 4% of gross domestic product. But 10 million people, about one-quarter of the Mexican workforce, still live off the land. And the dirt-poor campesino remains a potent symbol of Mexico's revolutionary legacy.