August 30, 2001

Tropical Storm Chantal Has Little Impact on Mexico's Summer Crop Prospects

Summary:

Mexico's summer 2001 crops were little impacted by tropical storm Chantal when it came ashore in easternmost Mexico on late-August 20^th in the Yucatan Peninsula. While this area is a popular tourist destination, the states of Campeche, Quintana Roo, Yucatan (where Chantal expended most of her energy, dropping a high of 8 inches rain in one day) are not major contributors to Mexico’s total agricultural production. The absence of a natural water system (very few lakes and rivers), and an environment that ranges from near-desert to jungle, confines most agricultural cultivation to the coastal and highland areas. Livestock operations are present, but not large scale. See map below.

Storms Can Cause Crop Damage:

Monsoonal downpours in August are commonplace in south Mexico and the remnants of Chantal did not dramatically increase precipitation above normal as the storm moved further inland. However, tropical storms breaking up over crop areas bear watching, as heavy localized wind gusts can flatten maturing rice and corn fields, reducing yields. 

Slightly Subpar Crop Development:

Precipitation along the southeast coast of Mexico was below normal for parts of May, June, and July, but soil moisture was sufficient to support continued, albeit reduced, crop development. August brought more abundant rainfall across south Mexico, but annual precipitation totals for the region may fall short of historical norms without additional tropical storms. Summer 2001 temperatures along the east coast have been mostly normal, but vegetative vigor continues to lag. 

The states of Veracruz and Tabasco, which form the western and southern shorelines of the Gulf of Mexico, figure prominently in rice production, sharing the same general planting and harvesting dates. Traditionally among the top three states in annual rice volume, Veracruz plants most of its rice in May and begins in September to harvest 27,000-37,000 tons. Eighty-nine percent of summer rice is grown in non-irrigated fields. Rice production in Tabasco state is expanding rapidly, with production in the mid-twenty thousand-ton range, 89 percent of it from non-irrigated summer fields.

Veracruz state provides about 6 percent of Mexico’s summer corn production, again in mostly dryland fields. Farther inland, the neighboring states Puebla and Tlaxacala, represent 5 percent of the national summer corn total. Tropical Storm Chantal, caused little negative impact upon these areas.  

For more information, contact Ron White with the Production Estimates and Crop Assessment Division on (202) 690-0137.