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Mexico Launches 'El Maíz es Raíz' to Revive Native Maize and Lift Small Producers

The initiative equips smallholders with technical guidance, shared machinery, a guarantee seal to shift native maize from subsistence to market.

Overview

  • President Claudia Sheinbaum unveiled the program with an initial rollout in Oaxaca, Chiapas, Guerrero, Yucatán, Campeche, Quintana Roo and Tabasco across 437 municipalities.
  • Authorities said the first phase aims to benefit more than 677,000 maize‑producing families in 2026, with collective use of light machinery rather than individual equipment.
  • By 2030, the plan targets about 1.5 million producers in 872 municipalities of 29 states and a 50% increase in productivity per hectare.
  • Support includes technical accompaniment, formation of “comunidades milperas” with youth from Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro, and value‑addition through totopos, tostadas and tortillas carrying a seal of origin.
  • Officials said the program complements existing Producción para el Bienestar payments and free fertilizer, with producers encouraged to avoid intermediaries by selling certified, processed goods.