Agricultural Land Use Change after NAFTA in Central West Mexico

Abstract

It has been suggested that agricultural land use change and modernization in agricultural production techniques are related to the loss of crop diversity. Two processes contribute to this loss; first is the replacement of landraces by modern varieties, and second is the abandonment of traditional crops in favor of cash crops. We studied the expression of these processes in a region that is both an agro-biodiversity and cultural center and one of the most significant fruit exporters of Mexico. We analyzed agricultural change based on the transformation of cropping areas and the primary crops' locations in Michoacán state. We examined the crop-harvested area statistics from 1950 to 2015, and identified 23 crops as the most important in terms of harvested area and monetary value. After NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), harvested area for nine crops changed significantly: seven crops increased, and two decreased. Positive trends were observed for commercial fruits oriented to export markets, and negative trends were observed for traditional crops. These crops, such as beans and maize, are important for food security. Additionally, we analyzed how these land-use and agricultural changes overlap in zones of maize planted-area change. Using a maize-race collection database, we identified three native maize races that could be at risk due to the abandonment of maize in favor of commercial crops.

Spatial Targeting of Agricultural Support Measures: Indicator-Based Assessment of Coverages and Leakages

“…Agricultural policy in Mexico is characterized by an extensive rural support system managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER) (formerly SAGARPA). SADER began merging agricultural and rural development policy in the early to mid-20th century, but greater attention to rural development and poverty came with passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994 [44]. These early support programs aimed to boost crop productivity as the primary means of addressing poverty, a policy emphasis that largely remained through the first two decades of the 21st century [45].…”

Avocado Cover Expansion in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Central Mexico

“…Avocado cultivation in the region began in 1995 when some municipalities of western and central Michoacán obtained the phytosanitary certification to export avocado to the United States, which encouraged many farmers in the state to replace their traditional crops, such as maize and bean, with avocado orchards [14], particularly after the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994. It caused the reduction of the market price of these traditional crops and, at the same time, enhanced the exportation of avocado from Mexico and its consumption in the United States [22].…”

Unraveling complex relations between forest-cover change and conflicts through spatial and relational analyses

“…Using this information, we explore the processes underlying the patterns of relations between FCC and conflicts observed in the three subregions. The Meseta Purépecha is an economically important forest region, with an internationally recognized experience of community forestry, and is the epicenter of international avocado production (Bofill Poch 2005, Orozco-Ramírez et al 2017. It also has a high percentage of indigenous populations and poverty rates (CDI 2010, CONEVAL 2014), acute deforestation and forest degradation processes (Mas et al 2017), and recurrent episodes of conflict over illegal logging and landownership (Espín Díaz 1986, Vázquez León 2016.…”