“We have realized a steady and healthy growth in the organic markets in the past five years,” shares Franzone, “and this steady growth allows us to absorb, learn, and educate customers on the other end.”
Seasonal shifts
As the Pharr port has a slightly longer shipping window than Nogales, and can offer better conditions during Arizona’s off period, local companies have come to rely on more specialized items to compensate for the shift in volume during the seasons.
Growers on the southern side of the border have responded by focusing on different products to match the shift. According to Bennen, “What this means is that Mexican growers are continuing to experiment and innovate, expanding production areas and times to meet U.S. demands for these and other items. It’s an exciting time to be in the business.”
Trade bumps
If there is one topic that looms above all others in conversations about altering the future of the Nogales deal, it is, of course, NAFTA. Donald Trump ran on a platform of renegotiating the terms of NAFTA, and while the depth and breadth of those changes are still to be determined, everyone agrees they are coming.
The agreement has been a crucial part of U.S.-Mexico trade for over 20 years, and agriculture and produce have been some of its biggest beneficiaries.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that NAFTA made the current Nogales produce deal what it is today,” observes Bill Graney, who recently retired as the owner and manager of Delta Brokerage Company, Inc. in Nogales. “And it’s just as true that what happens with it in the next few years will make a huge difference in how business is done here.”
Many people in the industry are hoping for a deal that will bolster the North American trade bloc and keep consumer prices low without causing too much political turmoil, while others, like Franzone, urge moderation.
“As long as there is no country that suffers as a result of another’s glory, I think [the United States, Mexico, and Canada] can work out an amicable, thriving relationship,” predicts Franzone. “I’m originally from Canada, now living in the United Sates, and working primarily with Mexican imported produce; this industry makes me proud of my NAFTA roots,” he adds.
Rallying support
Arizona’s four border counties, including Nogales’ home of Santa Cruz, concur on the need for a balanced approach to NAFTA and have formed a coalition to urge protection and preservation of the trade relationship between the United States and Mexico, despite the strong stance of the Trump administration.
Led by Pima County’s international projects coordinator, Teresa Bravo, the coalition hopes to maintain an arrangement that saw the Nogales port of entry ship produce to all fifty states in 2016, contributing to the sustained economic development of both countries. Bennen agrees, saying, “We feel confident officials will negotiate an updated agreement that is a win-win for both the United States and Mexico.”
