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- New Mexico Growers Face Increased Competition
by Dave DeWittNew Mexico red and green chile has been grown in the state for nearly 400 years, becoming the official state "vegetable" and the unofficial state symbol in the process. In fact, New Mexico grows more hot chile than all the other states combined. But that dominance is being challenged by the ancient source of the chile: Mexico.
Blame NAFTA. Blame a shortage of labor to pick the pods. Blame the pepper weevil. But wherever the blame lies--and it's actually a combination of all three--there is no doubt that both chile acreage and tonnage is steadily dropping in the Land of Enchantment. According to the USDA, trucks loaded with 18,000 pounds or more of chile from Ascension and Delicias, Chihuahua daily poured across the border ports of Santa Teresa and Columbus during the past harvest season.
"During the last four years, imports have been really, really heavy," said William Copenbarger, USDA port director at Columbus, quoted by Kent Paterson in the New Mexico publication, Crosswinds. Between June and mid-October, 1997, 1,085 truckloads of chile crossed the border, making it the number one import at the Columbus port of entry. This compares with a mere 149 shipments of chile in 1994. For jalapeños alone, in 1989 there were no Mexican imports. Then in 1994, 896 tons crossed the border. In 1995, the figure had jumped to 11,691 tons. The chile being imported from Mexico is, ironically, mostly New Mexican red and green varieties, plus the jalapeños and cayenne. Ironically, some New Mexican growers sell seed to their competitors across the border. From the border ports, the imported chile moves on to processing plants in southern New Mexico and some of the fresh green chile is shipped to northern New Mexico, mostly Albuquerque and Santa Fe, where it is mislabeled as "Hatch chile" and sold at a premium price, when in fact it is actually less expensive than New Mexican-grown chile.
The depressed state of New Mexican chile growing is partially the result of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which imposes no duties on imported chile. And since labor and other farming costs are lower in Mexico, U.S. processors often opt for the lower-priced imports. A typical U.S. wage for harvesting is $7 to $8 an hour; in Mexico the same wage is paid for an entire day's work. This results in, for example, jalapeño growing costs of $340 per ton in Doña Ana County, New Mexico as compared to a mere $172 per ton in Delicias, Chihuahua. Aggravating the problem is the fact that many New Mexican farmers are switching to growing cotton--often a more profitable crop because it is mechanically harvested. And some growers are frustrated by the infestations of the pepper weevil in the southern part of the state--another unwanted Mexican import that was an unexpected result of NAFTA. Although not of epidemic proportions, the weevil is now considered by the USDA to be an established, or "cosmopolitan" pest, and no regulatory actions can be taken by the agency.
But the future is not totally gloomy for New Mexico growers. Some are fighting back by leasing land in Mexico and growing their own inexpensive chile crops there. Others are buying mechanical harvesters to avoid the comparatively high costs of hand-picking crops in the U.S. Although a mechanical harvester can cost as much as $350,000, a jalapeño grower can save $40,000 a month in labor costs. The mechanical harvesters do a good job with jalapeños and dried red chile, but hand labor must still be used for fresh green New Mexican varieties.
And increasing demand for all varieties of chile plays a role as well, according to Javier Vargas, Doña Ana County extension agent. He believes that New Mexican growers will continue to have plenty of business. "You've got to understand that the demand for jalapeños and other chiles is increasing every year, with nachos at ball parks and jalapeños in restaurants like Church's Chicken. As the supply increases, so does the demand."
Sources: Jalapeño Growers in Hot Seat, by John R. Kent, Albuquerque Journal Business Outlook, September, 29, 1997; Where's That Chile From? By Kent Paterson, Crosswinds, November, 1997; and from Fiery Foods Magazine sources.
