Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
TheConversationCanada
Mexico’s planned glyphosate ban helped show how agroecology can lead the way forward
By Manuel Ángel Gómez Cruz, Professor of agricultural policy, agroecology and agricultural economics, University of ChapingoErin Nelson, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of GuelphLaura Gomez Tovar, Researcher on agroecology, organic agriculture and local markets, University of Chapingo,
Banning glyphosate is an essential step in protecting the health of humans and our ecosystems. Until a full ban is achieved, however, the pioneering work of farmers in Mexico shows how agroecological techniques can replace these chemical interventions.
Toxic exports
In April 2024, Mexico was set to become the largest jurisdiction to enact a total ban on glyphosate. However, just before the ban came into effect the government announced a pause .
A report on Glyphosate and Monsanto produced by the CBC.
In the northern region of Mexico’s Veracruz State, we are working with small-scale citrus farmers to help them transition away from glyphosate (and other agrochemicals) by supporting adoption of agroecological farming methods.
Our research shows that agroecological farming is a viable alternative and, with a little bit of support, large numbers of farmers are keen to make change.
Scaling up agroecology
The farmers we work with are abandoning glyphosate one hectare at a time. With funding from Mexico’s National Research Council, we have built a team of 38 agroecology technicians and community leaders who are helping farmers develop the knowledge and skills they need to replace chemicals with other practices.
Our team supports farmers to plant legume cover crops to crowd out weeds, and we have provided thousands of weed whackers to make manual weed control quicker and easier. We are also teaching farmers to make their own products from inexpensive local materials, like agua de vidrio — a solution of ash and lime — that provides nutrients to plants and helps control pests and diseases.
Part of what makes this work successful is that we are leading by example, using the Gómez family citrus farm as a living classroom. That farm used to produce conventional oranges. Then, in 2004, the family transitioned one hectare to organic production as an experiment. By 2012, the entire 16-hectare farm had transitioned away from agrochemical use and was certified as organic.
Since then, the Gómez’s have implemented a wide range of agroecological practices on the farm. They also created an outdoor classroom space and an area dedicated to producing compost and other ecological inputs.
In 2018 almost 1,000 people visited the farm — dubbed Huerta Madre, or Mother Farm by locals — to learn about agroecological methods. Thanks to government funding, in 2023 the number of visitors jumped to more than 2,500. The funding also enabled researchers and technicians to connect with more than 10,000 farmers across the region, sharing information about the potential dangers of glyphosate and the viability of agroecological alternatives.
Of those 10,000 farmers, 3,600 are now actively working with our team to stop using glyphosate and implement agroecological alternatives.
Reaching this number of farmers has been possible in part because the current Mexican government has made it clear that agroecology is a priority. While agroecological farming has long been championed by “ peasant organizations ” and social movements , political support of the kind happening in Mexico today has been harder to come by (although there are some notable exceptions ).
Presidential decree
A cornerstone of Mexico’s pro-agroecology policy was a 2020 decree by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador that the country would eliminate glyphosate use by January 2024. The decree was immediately criticized by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) . It was also contested — including via legal challenges — by Mexican agri-business interests, primarily in the country’s north where large-scale conventional farming dominates the landscape.
Even if a formal ban remains out of reach, Obrador’s decree created an important opening for agroecology in Mexico. While some initiatives have existed for decades , especially in the southern states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, government support has sparked development of many more.
The presidential decree also enabled unusually high levels of investment into agroecological research and development . Coupled with other pro-agroecology policies, the decree has created momentum for scaling up agroecology across the country. The thousands of citrus farmers who are finding success without glyphosate in Veracruz can attest to that.
The authors’ research was conducted with the support of research assistant Luis Enrique Ortiz-Martínez.
Erin Nelson receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Laura Gomez Tovar receives funding from Mexico's National Council of Humanities, Science, and Technology.
Manuel ángel Gómez Cruz receives funding from Mexico's National Council of Humanities, Science, and Technology.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Comments / 0