The first commercial pomegranate shipment from the Mezquital Valley in Mexico to the U.S. is finally under way, after growers from the region signed an agreement with the company Premium Fruit. 

The consignment consists of around six metric tons (MT) and is destined for Los Angeles where it is expected to fetch prices of between US$4-5 per kilogram (2.2 pounds).

It is hoped this initial shipment from the central region of Hidalgo will help to pave the way for more trade to occur throughout the rest of the U.S.

Mexico's Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fishing and Food (SAGARPA) director- in-chief Enrique Martínez y Martínez, urged Mezquital Valley growers to continue working on health and safety issues to increase their competitiveness.

In order to reach this point, he said farmers had to adjust their production systems according to U.S. programs for the fruit to be certified.

Around 200 growers from the region produce some 170MT worth of pomegranates annually.

Hidalgo State Committee for Plant Health president Leydi Pérez Pérez said not only did the new development show the agricultural sector could be strengthened with innovative projects that allow producers to enter new markets, but it also helped create jobs for young people and encouraged them not to move elsewhere in the country for work.

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