Mexican livestock sector maintains sustained growth
The federal official also acknowledged the extraordinary work of Senasica in epidemiological surveillance, which will be strengthened with the sterile fly breeding facility in Chiapas.
The Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development, Julio Berdegué Sacristán, highlighted that livestock farming maintains sustained growth and that the consumption of animal protein (meat, eggs, and milk) represents 37 percent of the diet of Mexican families.
“We have experienced many years of uninterrupted growth in production, trying to keep pace with extremely strong growth in the consumption of animal protein. That is very good. It tells us that a diet is changing because there is more well-being, more income, and less poverty,” he emphasized.
This result reflects the commitment and effort of the livestock farmers, the federal secretary emphasized, recognizing this sector as a pillar of Mexico's economy, health and food sovereignty.
Given the current situation, he called on them to work together to profoundly transform challenges such as the technological gap, strengthening sanitary control, modernizing the commercial chain, adding greater value and promoting sustainability in this sector.
He said that health goes beyond the work of the National Service for Agrifood Health, Safety and Quality (Senasica), since the commitment begins in each ranch, livestock associations, slaughterhouses, updating the registry, in each window selling ear tags of the National System of Individual Identification of Livestock (SINIIGA) and compliance with state and federal regulations.
Secretary Julio Berdegué emphasized the need to modernize the commercial chain from ranches to slaughterhouses, reducing informality and non-compliance with regulations, as some livestock is transported in an attempt to evade controls and rules.
Regarding value addition, he said that a standard for the meat classification system already exists but it is not applied because an agreement has not been reached, which, if achieved, would significantly improve domestic marketing and also bring it into line with international markets.
He also called on livestock farmers to face the challenge of sustainability, given that 152,000 hectares of forests and jungles are deforested annually to produce livestock, and to move forward with the approval of the Animal Welfare Law.
And he emphasized: “That, my friends, has no future, no future. Society is increasingly focused on that. It's not just about the meat being of good quality and having a good price; all of that is very important.”
Finally, he congratulated the ranchers, as well as the state governments and Senasica for their joint work in combating the cattle screwworm.
“You produce food sovereignty every day, with your effort, commitment and intelligence, and this is important and even more valuable today, in the times the world is living in,” he said at the commemorative event for National Livestock Day.
In his remarks, the president of the National Confederation of Livestock Organizations, Homero García de la Llata, acknowledged the commitment of the Mexican government to protect the national livestock herd and responsibly address current challenges such as the cattle screwworm plague and the suspension of exports to the United States.
During the ceremony, the "National Livestock Day 2026" awards were presented, with Senasica receiving the award in the category of universities and public organizations. Its director, Francisco Javier Calderón Elizalde, accepted the award.
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