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Title: Snapshot: the Mexican date industry

Author
item ORTIZ-URIBE, N - Universidad De Sonora
item SALOMON-TORRES, R - Universidad De Sonora
item Krueger, Robert

Submitted to: Subtropics newsletter
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/21/2020
Publication Date: 8/26/2020
Citation: Ortiz-Uribe, N., Salomon-Torres, R., Krueger, R. 2020. Snapshot: the Mexican date industry. Subtropics newsletter. Summer 2020, Vol 18, pp 7 - 14. http://ceventura.ucanr.edu/newsletters/Topics_in_Subtropics86365.pdf

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: This paper provides a summary of date production in Mexico and is aimed at US farmers. Date palms were first introduced to Mexico by the Spanish during the colonial period (16 - 18 centuries). Date palms became established in oases on the Baja California peninsula and became a crop for farmers there. The dates are low quality and there is currently a lack of active management; consequently date production from the oases is declining and unimportant on a national scale. Modern industrial date production began in the 1960's in the Valleys of San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora State, and Mexicali, Baja California State, which now account for 97 % of Mexican date production. Climate and soils in those areas are similar to those in the U.S. production areas, so most U.S. techniques have been adapted for use. Both planted area and yield per area have increased by about 100 % over the past decade. Most of the production is for export. Mexico needs to develop an internal market by developing products and making the health be