Mexico says aims for agreement with U.S. on GM corn in January

Mexico and the United States aim to reach an agreement in January over a pending Mexican ban on imports of genetically modified (GM) corn, the Mexican foreign ministry said Friday after officials from the two countries held talks in Washington.

In a statement, the ministry said talks would continue in the meantime as the two sides worked to reach a "mutual understanding" that gives "legal certainty to all parties." Mexico has a controversial presidential decree that is set to ban GM corn and the herbicide glyphosate in 2024.

U.S. officials have threatened to take action under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), arguing that the decree will harm U.S. farmers. Mexico, which imports about 17 million tonnes of U.S. corn a year, has said the decree focuses on corn for human consumption and that GM yellow corn for animal feed would be permitted.

Mexican officials, however, have yet to announce formal modifications to the decree.