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🇲🇽 Mexico /Economy & Trade

Natural gas highlighted as key to Mexico’s food security

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis Named sources Context piece
  • Natural gas provides a raw material for producing fertilizers used in agriculture, making energy supply part of Mexico’s food-security chain.
  • Mexico’s Fertilizers for Well-Being program had reached more than 2.03 million producers and 3.3 million hectares by July 30.
  • Researcher Adrián Duhalt said reliable gas infrastructure could support fertilizer production and broader productive uses beyond electricity generation.

The path from a field to a family’s table includes an input that may not immediately come to mind: natural gas. In Mexico, the fuel serves as a raw material for some fertilizers that provide crops with the nutrients they need to grow.

When those nutrients are lacking, agricultural production can suffer. Mexico’s Fertilizers for Well-Being program rules state that nutrient deficiencies directly affect crops’ productive potential and can limit food availability. “The lack of natural gas has been one of the obstacles to strengthening food security,” said Adrián Duhalt, a nonresident researcher at the Texas-Mexico Center, in an interview.

The lack of natural gas has been one of the obstacles to strengthening food security

· Adrián DuhaltThe researcher linked gas availability to Mexico’s ability to produce agricultural fertilizers.

The federal fertilizer program shows the scale of the country’s agricultural input needs. As of July 30, it had assisted more than 2.03 million producers across more than 3.3 million hectares in all 32 states. Corn accounted for 75.49% of the area covered, followed by beans at 6.40%, sugar cane at 5.98%, and coffee at 4.89%, according to the Agriculture Secretariat.

the main trigger

· Adrián DuhaltDuhalt described natural gas supply as the main driver for developing new fertilizer production capacity.

The government’s 2026 goal is to help increase production of priority crops by supplying fertilizer for food production. Fertilizer does not determine harvest levels on its own, since natural conditions also affect crops, but access to adequate nutrients helps sustain productivity. Program rules estimate that fertilizer can account for 30% to 50% of the total production cost of basic crops such as corn and beans.

Producing some of those fertilizers in Mexico requires both available gas and infrastructure to transport it. Duhalt called gas supply “the main trigger” for developing new production capacity. He said a broader, more reliable network could also allow natural gas to support productive activities beyond power generation. “The government should not only worry about ensuring that the country has a more reliable and extensive gas pipeline network, but should also add value to that gas beyond electricity generation,” he said.

The government should not only worry about ensuring that the country has a more reliable and extensive gas pipeline network, but should also add value to that gas beyond electricity generation

· Adrián DuhaltHe called for stronger gas infrastructure and wider industrial uses for the fuel.
About this summary

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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