Governor Doug Ducey has made a request to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue to assist Arizona’s dairy farmers by finding solutions to restart the international export of Arizona dairy products to Mexico.
In a written news release from the governor’s office, Ducey said that last week the Mexican Ministry of Health announced it would cease administrative operations, effectively halting the export of dairy products across the border from Arizona to Mexico.
Ducey said the closure has hit Arizona’s dairy farmers hard, a situation that will grow worse without reform to the permitting process or other actionable solutions between the United States and Mexican governments.
According to the United Dairymen of Arizona, in 2019, the Arizona’s dairy industry had a $7.7 billion total economic impact on the state. And last year, Arizona’s dairy exports to Mexico totaled over $150 million.
