XINHUA

U.S. representatives and members of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) leftist National Regeneration Movement (Morena) government have one month to resolve their dispute over genetically modified (GMO) corn, before establishing a dispute settlement panel, AMLO said Tuesday, March 7.

Speaking during his daily press conference, López Obrador said that representatives from both countries are trying to reach an agreement so that a qualified U.S. agency and its Mexican equivalent can carry out an analysis on the issue.

“We have a month to reach an understanding before going to the panel,” he said.

“In the meantime, Mexico will not allow genetically modified corn to be consumed by our people.”

On Monday, March 6, the U.S. Trade Representative’s office requested formal trade consultations under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on its initiative to regulate GMO corn.

And on Wednesday, March 8, Canada joined the United States in demanding a resolution on the issue of GMO corn.

The United States has said that the Mexican measure will affect the trade in yellow corn, which comes from U.S. farmers.

The United States exports tens of millions of units of yellow corn to Mexico every year, and 90 percent of all corn grown within the United States is genetically modified, which AMLO has said can be harmful to human health.

The United States, on the other hand, has insisted that AMLO’s claims against GMO corn are without scientific evidence.