A new scientific analysis prepared by CONAHCYT, Mexico’s National Council for Humanities, Science and Technology, argues there are unacceptable health risks for Mexican people who consume genetically modified (GM) corn and glyphosate, the world’s most widely used herbicide.

The 200-page document with 1,200 references – posted here for the first time in English – underpins Mexico’s 2023 decree to restrict the use of GM corn in tortillas and other minimally processed corn products, and to phase out the use of glyphosate. The U.S. challenged those policies as unfair trade practice under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). A decision in that case is expected imminently.

Whatever the ruling, Mexico’s new President Claudia Sheinbaum has said her government will not allow the cultivation of GM corn. Sheinbaum also recently announced plans to try to place GM corn restrictions in Mexico’s constitution; “this is the best defense we have for biodiversity as well as for our health,” she said.

Mexico’s stand for food sovereignty and the scientific evidence they gathered to support their case have worldwide relevance, as nations across the Global South grapple with seed laws that would open the doors to GM foods. It also comes at a time when U.S. consumers are losing faith in the safety of our food supply, according to a recent Gallup poll.