|
|
|
|
|
By Lana Robinson
Field Editor
A team of Texas Farm Bureau leaders and staff who traveled to and within Mexico, April 11-14, returned optimistic that Lone Star cotton producers may be able to market more of their commodity to their neighbors south of the border.
Tapped to explore avenues for increasing the use of Texas cotton in textile operations there were TFB Vice President Lloyd Arthur of Ralls, Dist. 3 State Director Steve Cochran, Aspermont, Dist. 6 State Director Gary McGehee, Mertzon, TFB Cotton Chairman Kody Carson, Olton, TFB Marketing Education Director Bryce Myrick and TFB Associate Director of Commodity and Regulatory Activities George Caldwell. Coordinating and accompanying the participants was Lupe Torres, Agribusiness and Rural Economic Development specialist for the Texas Department of Agriculture.
"We met with owners of several of the textile mills, and the president of the Mexico Textile Association," said Caldwell. "They're already buying U.S. cotton, and a good bit of it is Texas cotton. We'd like a larger percent for Texas."
According to Lloyd Arthur, the trip was an outgrowth of past discussions at the board level of looking at ways to find markets for Texas products for TFB members.
"I think the trip was very beneficial, the contacts we made," said Arthur. "The opportunity may be out there to help expand Texas' share of the Mexico textile market. They already buy 90 percent of their cotton from the U.S. We have the edge, being neighbors. They say they favor U.S. cotton because of our classing system. They can depend on it being what they want. Mexico's domestic cotton has a higher percentage of discrepancy."
Arthur said officials and representatives of business firms they met everywhere in Mexico were professional.
"It was a first connection of acquaintances. We are trying to build a relationship, to see if we can develop a better market or more demand for our Texas farmers. That's the whole key. We are trying to find a way to make it profitable for Texas farmers and more profitable for them on the other side. It's a tough competitive business. There's cheap cotton. There's cheaper labor in China than Mexico. Mexico is also experiencing higher fuel prices. They are conscientious of the bottom line. We have to see if there's somewhere we can accommodate, find some ground to increase that marketshare for our Texas folks," he said.
Kody Carson said he was amazed at the openness of the mill owners and businessmen they met.
"To be truthful, I thought we might be knocking on closed doors, but the people were so friendly and receptive to what we were attempting to accomplish. They were very forthcoming in their dealings, financing, and in telling us what they needed. I felt like they disclosed some pretty privileged financial information. The hospitality was really neat," Carson said. "We never got any hint of any kind of adversarial feelings. What we heard was `We're neighbors. We're in this together, and we better watch China.' What tickled me is you go to U.S. mills, and they say they can't compete with the cheap Mexican labor. The mill owners in Mexico said the same thing about the Chinese."
The TFB group also visited with La La, a dairy cooperative located in the dry, North Central region of Mexico termed La Laguna (La La) at the border between the states of Coahuila and Durango. This region is well suited for agriculture and dairy production, much like the Central Valley of California.
"The La La facility is a central feeding station that distributes cotton seed and grains. They are also looking for milo. There is no restriction on milo going into Mexico, but there is on corn. They protect their corn industry, especially food corn," said Arthur.
The Torreon region is home to 750,000 inhabitants and is sprawling in its expanse, much like Los Angeles. Here, they visited a denim mill, which creates yarn, dyes, spins, and weaves the denim for a customer who makes the product.
"I was amazed at the Americanization I witnessed during the trip," said Carson. "We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express in Torreon. There was an Applebee's next door, and a Home Depot and Wal-Mart down the street. I went into a local mall and could not find anything Mexican to bring back home to my kids. It was just like being in Lubbock or Waco. The vehicles on the street, with a few exceptions, looked just like here. We went by a country club. People had electric garage doors, and I saw four-wheelers and skateboards inside. It was very American. That was a real eye-opener for me. My dealings were mostly with towns along the border...once you get into the heart of Mexico, it's much different. I really liked the people and the culture."
Carson said he had expected Mexico City to be more tropical, but found it to be a dry desert-looking area with a severe smog problem.
Carson believes working with TDA was a definite advantage. He said Lupe Torres did an outstanding job making the contacts and opening the right doors for the TFB leaders.
"His knowledge of the business and customs and interpretive abilities were all great, plus the fact that TDA has access to information about a lot of governmental funding that can help," said Carson. "I came back home really thinking the trip was definitely worthwhile and the opportunities are worth pursuing. They were so open and interested, we asked them to give us time to go back and talk to our people. I've already met with our local gin manager and ran some ideas past him. His response was `When are we going to Mexico?' The trip really exceeded my expectations."
Commenting on the Bush administration's recent decision to comply with the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling regarding cotton subsidies, and how that may affect any potential markets in Mexico, George Caldwell said, "It's going to impact cotton, the competitiveness of U.S. cotton, somewhat. Those who complained that the subsidies impaired or hurt their markets are increasing acres as we speak. So it's really hard to explain...It's important that we look for ways to keep it competitive without this part of the program. It's a cyclical deal. It only kicks in when world levels fall below our loan levels. There is a big concern about how this will impact the current year's programs. It still remains to be seen how it will affect the '05 crop year."
Arthur said some local logistics have to be worked out, and some roadblocks must be overcome in order for trade to move forward.
