Sheinbaum Announces Dates for the Reopening of Border to Livestock

The President highlighted the agreement to reopen the U.S. border to Mexican cattle on July 7, though working groups are still ongoing.

By Once Noticias. Mexican Press Agency.

President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed that an initial agreement has been reached to reopen the U.S. border for Mexican cattle exports.

During the “Mañanera del Pueblo” press conference, the President outlined the dates and locations where border crossings will resume.

“Yesterday, we reached a preliminary agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Working groups are still in progress to expedite the full reopening, but for now, the Agua Prieta, Sonora border crossing will reopen on July 7; Puerto Palomas, Chihuahua on July 14; San Jerónimo, Chihuahua on July 21; Acuña, Coahuila on August 18; and Colombia, Nuevo

León on September 15,” the President reported.

She clarified that the Mexican government is continuing to work with Washington to reopen the Nogales, Sonora export point and to speed up the process overall.

Sheinbaum noted that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s reasoning is that “they want to reopen gradually to monitor the situation with the screwworm,” to which the Mexican agency has “repeatedly emphasized that this pest is contained and currently only found in specific areas of the country’s south, far from the northern border.”

Agreement Between Mexico and the United States

Yesterday, Mexico’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER) announced that a phased reopening of the border for live cattle exports had been agreed upon with the United States, starting July 7.

In an official statement, the SADER reported that the decision followed a virtual meeting between Mexico’s Minister of

Agriculture, Julio Berdegué Sacristán, and his U.S. counterpart, Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Agriculture. The agreement was based on a favorable U.S. assessment of Mexico’s strategy to control and eradicate the cattle screwworm (CSW).

It was also announced that on July 1, a bilateral technical meeting would take place between the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and Mexico’s National Service for Agri-Food Health, Safety and Quality (SENASICA) to follow up on the agreement.