Quintana Roo Corn Farmers Get Federal Boost

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — The agricultural sector of Quintana Roo will be a beneficiary as part of the first stage of the National Plan for Native Corn, "El Maíz es la Raíz" (Corn is the Root). The initiative will provide increased support from the Secretary of Agriculture, Rural Development, and Fisheries (Sedarpe).

During this initial phase, approximately 677,000 agricultural producers will be supported across an area of 886,000 hectares. These producers are distributed across 437 municipalities in the states of Quintana Roo, Campeche, Yucatán, Guerrero, Chiapas, and Oaxaca.

Strengthening Production and Providing Support

The program aims to strengthen agricultural production and provide support to farmers in the state, primarily those located in the municipalities of Felipe Carrillo Puerto and José María Morelos. It is expected that more Quintana Roo producers will be added in the next phase.

Through this program, production is expected to be strengthened, with yields per hectare increasing by up to 20% in the short term. The long-term goal is to achieve up to a 50% increase by the year 2030.

Furthermore, the program will seek to preserve the genetic diversity of Mexico's native corn, which is considered a living Germplasm Bank.

Quintana Roo's Role in the Federal Strategy

In the case of Quintana Roo, there are nearly 25,000 corn producers and 53,000 hectares used for cultivating this product within the registry of beneficiaries for the mentioned program.

These producers will also be part of a technical support scheme and will have access to collective machinery, as well as the exchange of traditional knowledge.

The Operating Rules and Guidelines for the program have yet to be defined and will depend on the final number of producers and hectares from Quintana Roo included as beneficiaries.

It is noteworthy that six races and fifteen varieties of native corn have been found in the Yucatán Peninsula, and these are also present in the state of Quintana Roo. This fact increases the importance of Quintana Roo within this federal strategy.