When gringo thirst depends on a neighbor with the key turned off
Ah, United States, that country that loves Mexican tomatoes but hates paying for them without tariffs. It turns out that, according to experts (who, surprise, are not TikTok influencers), it is in the US’ best interest for Mexico to have water. Because? Because without it, goodbye to the peppers, cucumbers and, most tragically, the avocados that decorate your Instagrammable brunches. Since 2016, Mexico has been its main agricultural supplier, but of course, that did not stop Donald Trump from threatening a 20.91% tariff on tomatoes. Irony? No, just commercial policy.
Sinala: land of narcocorridos… and epic droughts
Francisco Chapa, former president of the Agricultural Council of Nuevo León, sums it up like this: “Sinaloa has no water, the dams are empty”. Wow, and what does Sinaloa produce? Only the crops that Americans devour: tomatoes, peppers, cucumber… Basically, the salad that accompanies their hamburgers. “If it doesn’t rain, there will be no planting,” Chapa warns, as if the sky had a faucet that Mexico forgot to open. And the US, instead of sending buckets, sends tariffs. Brilliant strategy.
But all is not lost. Chapa believes that Trump will back down with the tomato tariff because it would be “a bullet in the feet.” Or in guacamole? In 2024, the US imported $3,418 million in avocados and $3,124 million in tomatoes from Mexico. Translation: Without Mexico, your millennials would have nothing to spread on their $15 toast.
Meanwhile, the Río Bravo, that stream of water that Mexico shares with the US by a 1944 treaty, is celebrating six years of drought. Solution? Nobody knows, but if it rains memes, we do share those. What do you think? Share this gem of water diplomacy and continue exploring more disasters across business lines.
