The trilateral trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada has delivered substantial wins for U.S. wheat farmers, thanks to the elimination of tariffs and strengthening sanitary and phytosanitary requirements. Today, Mexico is the most important market for U.S. wheat growers, typically representing 20 percent of U.S. wheat exports each year, up from less than three percent prior to formal trilateral trade agreements entering into force in 1994.
The U.S. wheat industry recently shared how the strong economic environment and trilateral cooperation provided by the agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada (USMCA) has resulted in this export success in comments to the Office of the United States Trade Representative.
The comments – submitted jointly by U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) – called for maintaining the competitiveness of U.S. wheat in Mexico, addressing lingering challenges with Canada and developing a stronger trilateral market in North America.
“Open markets and fair trade are critical to the U.S. wheat industry as approximately half of U.S. wheat production is exported each year,” the comments read. “U.S. farmers have a competitive advantage in producing wheat, and the United States is one of the largest exporters of wheat in the world. Ensuring a fair playing field for U.S. producers facilitates wheat exports, which bring billions of dollars in economic activity across the wheat value chain.”
Preserving Wheat Export Success in Mexico
U.S. wheat exports to Mexico have increased substantially in both volume and share of total U.S. wheat sales. In the first year of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) – the predecessor to the USMCA – Mexico imported nearly 23 million bushels (625,000 metric tons (MT)), compared to almost 147 million bushels (4.0 MMT) in the first full year of USMCA implementation. In the 2024/2025 marketing year, the United States exported about 125 million bushels (3.4 MMT) of U.S. wheat to Mexico.
“The success of U.S. wheat exports to Mexico was built on strong relationships with the Mexican milling and baking industries as well as a predictable policy framework,” said Dalton Henry, USW vice president of policy and communications, “As a result, preserving the core text and current provisions that help facilitate this success is critical to demonstrate to our customers that they can count on a reliable supply of U.S. wheat.”
Addressing Continued Trade Issues with Canada
The comments also detailed areas for further cooperation and enhancement, particularly related to U.S.-Canada agricultural trade.
Canada is an important ally for rules-based trade and science-based decision making. However, it is a major competitor to U.S. wheat. Previous North American agreements, including USMCA, have mentioned two issues U.S. wheat has with Canada: its variety registration system and its railroad maximum revenue entitlement. Both are areas where more work needs to be done to deliver real outcomes, while preserving the core text of the USMCA and current provisions.
“We appreciate the opportunity to provide comments as part of our regular engagement with USTR and the USDA on the challenges facing the export of wheat from the United States,” Henry said. “As the conversations around agricultural trade between our three nations evolves, our top priority is to maintain the agreement with both countries to prevent new trade barriers within North America.”
“Prior to NAFTA, state intervention and import tariffs kept U.S. wheat exports out of the Mexican market. Today, it is almost impossible to exaggerate the benefits of the Mexican market for U.S. wheat producers, and NAFTA/USMCA is the demonstrable cause of those benefits.”
