Nogales, Arizona – The First and for a Long Time the Only – Gateway for Fresh Produce from Mexico

Vegetables and especially tomatoes recorded significantly higher increases than other fresh produce in 2023

On November 23, 1882, Tucson grocer Joseph Sresovich,[1] owner of a grocery store at the corner of Meyer and Messilla streets, returned from Sonora. The next day he placed an announcement in the Arizona Daily Star informing his customers (and competitors) that he had made “perfect arrangements for shipments of beautiful golden oranges” from the orchards around Hermosillo.[2] He had also arranged for daily delivery of fresh oysters and fish from Guaymas, and kept it as no secret that those products from Sonora were about one-fifth of the price for the same products delivered to the Tucson markets from California. Like other Tucson’s grocers, Sresovich was counting on opportunities to deliver his products by a newly opened railroad line between Sonora and Arizona, even if it was not a direct connection between Nogales and Tucson, but instead a detour via Benson.[3] Little did Sresovich and other Tucson grocers know that just in the next several decades the importation of Mexican fresh produce would become a huge business, delivering much more than golden oranges, and serving markets well beyond Tucson and Arizona. By 2022, the combined value of imported fruit and vegetables from Mexico through the Nogales Port was in excess of $3.5 billion.[4]

Importing Oranges, Fish, and Crustaceous for More Than 140 Years

Although today it is a much bigger and better-organized business than in Sresovich’ time, the import of Sonoran oranges represents just a fraction of the multibillion-worth of fresh produce imported from Mexico via Nogales. In 2022, the Nogales Port facilitated $59.7 million worth of citrus fruit, a mere fraction (4.5%) of all imported fruit valued at more than $1.3 billion.[5] However, the imported value of oranges in 2022 was 52.4% above the 2019 imports, which represented one of the highest increases of all imported commodities.

The import of maritime products (HS03) from Sonora through the Nogales Port was valued at $258.2 million in 2022, a decline of 9.5% compared to the 2019 level. This may partially reflect the implementation of the restrictions introduced in April 2020 requiring compliance with the import restrictions and Certification of Admissibility. The import restrictions were introduced for the protection of certain fish in the Upper Gulf of California (also known as the Sea of Cortez). [6]

Grapes and Avocados Surpassed Oranges

Unlike Sonoran oranges, avocados are a relatively new fruit commodity being imported through the Nogales Port.[7] Until very recently, all avocados shipped through the Nogales Port were grown in the Michoacán State. In 2022, the total value of imported avocados was $235.1 million representing 17.7% of the total fruit category. With the opening of new orchards for export production in Jalisco, which is geographically closer to Nogales than Michoacán, it is expected that the shipments to the U.S. markets will increase through the Nogales Port.

Grapes are the major fruit commodity imported from Sonora accounting for close to half of the total value (46.7%). In 1922, the imported grapes through the Nogales Port were worth $620.8 million, an increase of 5.4% over the 2019 value. Sonora is the main grape-producing region in Mexico and the exclusive exporter of grapes to the U.S. market through the Nogales port. However, it may soon be joined by another grape-producing region, the state of Jalisco.[8] Currently, the Sonoran harvest of grapes fills a narrow gap supplying the U.S. markets from April through July between California grapes arriving at the end of summer/early fall and the Chilean grapes in winter.

The King of Tomatoes

The import of tomatoes from Sonora and Sinaloa, grown in open fields and increasingly in greenhouses, is what has put the Nogales Port on the map as the number one gateway for Mexican tomatoes. In 2022, the Nogales Port facilitated $662.6 million worth of tomatoes, a 15.6% increase over 2019 value. Note that the value of imported tomatoes is just about $40 million above the value of imported grapes.  As suggested in an earlier article, this makes the Nogales Port a holder of yet another royal crown, the King of Grapes.

As shown in Figure 1, during January through March 2023 the import of tomatoes was about 40% above its dollar value in the same period a year ago. While the value of all imported commodities was higher in 2023 than in 2022, vegetables and especially tomatoes recorded significantly higher increases. However, without comparable data on tonnage, it is difficult to gauge the actual involvement of inflation.

Figure 1. Imports through the Nogales Port of Entry, January-March 2023, Percent Change versus 2022

Truck Crossings Are Up as Well in the First Quarter

Figure 2 shows the border crossings of trucks at the Nogales Port during the first three months of 2023.  Even if records do not differentiate between trucks carrying agricultural versus trucks carrying manufacturing commodities, an increased number of border crossings suggests an overall increase in the volume (tonnage) of freight carried across the border.

Figure 2. Northbound Truck Crossings at the Nogales Port of Entry, January-March 2023, Percent Change versus 2022

Unlike in Sresovich’ time, the trucks -- the existence of which had not even been imagined at that time -- are today the prevailing mode of transportation for cross-border deliveries of fresh produce into Arizona. The railroad, which was so important in the early shipments of agricultural products from Sonora, transports predominantly manufacturing and mining products.  

A few years ago, in 2014, the Nogales International reported that for the first time in decades, carloads of melons were delivered from Nogales to the East Coast by train, rather than truck.[9] Continuing negotiations between growers, shippers, and rail companies may yet open doors for an extended utilization of rail in the transportation of other fresh produce commodities.