Market Trends of mexico vegetable seed Industry
Higher export demand and favorable climatic conditions for major vegetables are driving areas under vegetable cultivation
- The area under vegetable cultivation in Mexico was 843 thousand hectares, which accounted for 5.9% of the cultivable land in 2022. The area under cultivation of vegetables in the country has observed a decline of 2.5% from 837.6 thousand hectares from 2019 to 2018. The decrease in the acreage in 2019 was due to unfavorable climatic conditions, including above-average temperatures.
- In Mexico, Solanaceous crops occupied the major share of the vegetable acreage, which accounted for 37.7% of the country in 2022. The higher share was because of the presence of major vegetables such as tomatoes and chilies. Chilies occupied higher acreage with 180.8 thousand hectares in 2022. The rising export demand from international markets, especially from the United States, has raised the cultivation area in the country.
- Unclassified vegetables were the second-largest segment in the country, accounting for 25.5% of the country's area under vegetable cultivation in 2022. The major vegetable under the segment is asparagus, which occupies 35.4 thousand hectares. Asparagus acreage in the country increased by 42.8% from 2017, with 24.8 thousand hectares to 2022. The increase in acreage is associated with higher market prices and demand from export markets, making farmers adopt asparagus cultivation. Roots & bulbs and cucurbits are the other major vegetable segments cultivated in the country, which accounted for 16.8% and 13.1% of the overall acreage in 2022, respectively, with potato, onion, and pumpkin being the important vegetables.
- Therefore, the requirement for domestic consumption and demand from export markets, especially from the United States and Canada, are driving the vegetable acreage in the country.
Onion varieties with long-shelf and short-life traits and asparagus varieties with wider adaptability traits have higher demand in Mexico
- Onion and asparagus are widely grown and consumed in Mexico. A variety of traits are developed in these crops to enhance productivity and minimize risk.
- Onion varieties are increasing rapidly each year. Disease-resistant varieties hold a significant share in onions because diseases such as pink root rot and Fusarium basal cause huge yield loss and financial loss to the growers of onions in the country. Therefore, to resist the diseases, farmers are significantly adopting seeds with disease-resistant traits. Furthermore, they are defined by their size, shape, color, preserving ability, pungency, or maturation habits. The production of high-yielding varieties is majorly preferred in the country. For instance, Bayer AG and BASF SE have a majority of their onion varieties resistant to diseases such as pink root rot and Fusarium basal rot.
- Asparagus is widely consumed in Mexico, and the major challenge the country faced was a decline in production due to adverse weather conditions. The wider adaptability traits are in high demand in the country because asparagus is grown throughout the year, and the crop must adapt to different climatic conditions. In 2022, the wider adaptability traits accounted for 57.1% of Mexico's asparagus seed market. The other popular traits include disease resistance and drought tolerance. The yield per hectare is low in some areas because this crop has high disease problems and mostly rots and rusts that are caused by high moisture content in the soil.
- High-quality crops with high disease resistance and product innovations with quality attribute traits are expected to increase the demand for these seeds during the forecast period.
OTHER KEY INDUSTRY TRENDS COVERED IN THE REPORT
- The growers prefer seeds that are resistant to diseases, with longer shelf life and wider adaptability to different regions and climate conditions, which are driving the demand for improved tomato and cucumber varieties
- Hybrid breeding is the most popular cultivation technique employed in vegetable seeds