Sheinbaum agrees to lower tortilla prices; relief or a trap for your wallet?

In a measure of high impact for the economy of all Mexican families, President Claudia Sheinbaum has signed an agreement with the industry to reduce the price of tortillas . The goal is a reduction of up to 10% during her six-year term .

The most emblematic and essential food on the Mexican table is at the center of a bold new government policy. President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the signing of the National Corn-Tortilla Agreement , a pact with producers, flour millers, and tortilla makers that seeks, in her words, to defend the popular economy and curb the rising cost of this essential product.

The promise is ambitious: an initial reduction of 5% over the next six months and a goal of reaching 10% by the end of the six-year term . However, the measure has sparked a fierce debate between those who applaud it as an act of social justice and those who criticize it as a risky intervention with potentially negative consequences.

The agreement is not a decree-based price control , according to the government, but rather a comprehensive strategy. Key actions include the provision of up to 500 million pesos in financing through the Agricultural Trusts (FIRA) so tortilla factories can modernize their equipment and improve efficiency.

In addition, the Ministry of Economy has committed to reviewing the Mexican Official Standard (PROY-NOM-187) that regulates dough and tortilla products, and to working on eliminating intermediaries , who are identified as one of the factors that increase the price of the final product before it reaches the consumer.

Not all industry members are against the agreement. Representatives of the formal sector have expressed their support, arguing that the measure could help combat what they consider unfair competition . Homero López , president of the National Tortilla Council , has pointed out that informal businesses are "a cancer" for the sector.

"These are businesses that don't pay taxes. They don't pay social security, and they're out of line selling tortillas. This affects people who are established, who do pay our obligations to the state," López stated in statements reported by the media.

From this perspective, the agreement and financing could strengthen established businesses and formalize a key sector of the economy.

At the other extreme, critics within the same industry and economic analysts warn that the measure is unsustainable and could be counterproductive. They argue that the current price of tortillas , which in some regions reaches 30 pesos per kilo , is already undervalued if all production costs are considered.

"Tortillas currently cost less than they're worth," an industry representative stated in an interview, citing rising costs for gas, electricity, gasoline, rent, paper, and wages as factors pushing up prices. The central criticism is that the government is trying to get producers to absorb the reduction without offering direct subsidies , but only credit .

The controversy has escalated on social media and opinion forums , where critics evoke the ghosts of price control policies in other countries. The warnings are clear: if producers can't cover their costs, they could face bankruptcy.

Comments on platforms like TikTok and X (formerly Twitter) point to the risk of a "rebound effect" : "This is how it starts, then comes the shortage because the seller cannot cover the cost of production [...] And the black market appears, selling at a higher price," said one user.

Others compare the measure to strategies implemented in Venezuela , warning of a path of "regulation, then expropriation."

The question remains whether the agreement will bring real and sustainable relief to Mexicans' pockets or whether it will create market distortions with even more serious long-term consequences.