White Maize (Zea mays l.) Production Potential in Mexico

Abstract

In Mexico, maize or corn (Zea mays) is the main food for ancient tradition and tortilla is the staple food base. There are many types of this grain, the most used in Mexico territory is white corn. In this paper the objectives were to get the level of corn production potential, compare it with the national demand and to determine if Mexico can be self-sufficient in corn production. A mix approach in two stages was used. The first stage consisted of searching for statistical data from official web sites. The second stage consisted on data processing. A logarithmic regression was designed to estimate the production potential and the elasticities of the production components. Results showed, at maximum potential, Mexico is capable of producing the corn that its population demands and have enough to export. Accordingly, it can be suggested to reorganize production of corn and other cereals, with special attention to the most productive zones.