FAIRS Country Report Annual - Animal Plant Forestry and Biotech Laws
Report Number: MX2025-0049 Date: December 02, 2025 Country: Mexico Prepared By: USDA FAS Foreign Agricultural Service Source: [USDA GAIN Report](https://apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/Report/DownloadReportByFileName?fileName=FAIRS+Country+Report+Annual_Monterrey+ATO_Mexico_MX2025-0049.pdf)
Animal Plant Forestry and Biotech Laws
Federal Animal Health Law: According to SADER, this law’s stated objective is to establish necessary animal health measures to safeguard Mexico's livestock assets/heritage. These measures include applying best management practices for livestock production, regulations for national and international transit of animals and animal products, and the operation of privatelyowned verification and inspection points for animals and animal products. This Law also covers good manufacturing practices (GMP) applicable for establishments dedicated to producing chemical, pharmaceutical, or biological compounds for use in animals or feed; and GMPs for animal and animal products for human consumption. Access SADER's National Service for Health, Food Safety, and Food Quality (SENASICA) manuals here. Regulations for imports, international transit, and exports fall under Title Three, Chapter II of the Law. SENASICA oversees the implementation and enforcement of the regulations. SENASICA's specific import requirements for live animals, animal products and by-products, and seafood are known as zoosanitary requirement sheets or Hojas de Requisitos Zoosanitarios (HRZ). Visit SENASICA's Módulo de Consulta de Requisitos para la Importación de Mercancías Zoosanitarias to review specific regulatory requirements. Under the law SADER oversees pet and animal feed, regulates feed additives and pharmaceuticals used in livestock production, and determines their maximum residue levels (MRLs). The Federal Law for Plant Health: SADER is also in charge of the enforcement of this law. Topics covered under the Law include pest identification and measures to prevent pests' introduction that could harm plant health and their by-products. Phytosanitary requirements for importing regulated goods and the provisions covering inspection and certification of imported goods fall under Title Four, Chapter III, and Chapter IV. SENASICA is responsible for implementing and enforcing regulations of the Law. The specific import requirements for plant and plant products are found online in SENASICA's Módulo de Consulta de Requisitos Fitosanitarios para la Importación de Mercancía de Origen Vegetal. The General Law on Sustainable Forestry Development: The Law is applied under the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT). It regulates and promotes conservation, restoration, organization, development, management, and exploitation of its forestry ecosystems and resources. It also safeguards forest products and by-products, including wood packaging material (WPM). Wood packaging material is defined as wood or wood products (excluding paper products) used for supporting, protecting, or carrying cargo, including, but not limited to, dunnage, crating, pallets, packing blocks, drums, cases, or skids. The regulations fall under Chapter III, Articles 129 through 139. Specific import requirements for wood packaging material, Christmas trees, wood by-products used as raw material in basketry, and sawn wood under SEMARNAT's supervision:
Wood Packaging Material: NOM-144-SEMARNAT-2017
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Christmas trees: On November 12, 2020, SEMARNAT published modifications to NOM-013; edits appear in NOM-013-SEMARNAT-2020. The significant changes include the incorporation of four quarantine insects: Pissodes fasciatus, Polistes dominula, Sciopithes obscurus, and Steremnius carinatus; and a statement in the phytosanitary certificate, issued by APHIS or state departments of agriculture, "trees have been inspected, chemically treated, mechanically agitated, and are free of quarantine pests per NOM -013-SEMARNAT-2020."
Wood by-products used as raw material: NOM-029-SEMARNAT-2003
Sawed Wood: NOM-016-SEMARNAT-2013
The Federal Prosecutor for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA) is SEMARNAT's operating arm and is responsible for enforcing the regulations at ports of entry (POE). Law on Biosecurity of Genetically Modified Organisms: This law is applied under the InterSecretariat Commission of Biosafety of Genetically Modified Organisms (CIBIOGEM). The commission includes SADER, SEMARNAT, SALUD, HACIENDA, Ministry of Public Education (EDUCACION), ECONOMIA, and the newly created Secretariat of Science, Humanities, Technology and Innovation (SECIHTI) each with their respective fields of competence. The Law on Biosecurity of Genetically Modified Organisms regulates the import, export, commercialization, research, and release of genetically engineered (GE) products into the environment. Additional second-tier regulations are found under the Law at Regulations for Law on Biosecurity of Genetically Modified Organisms. Law for Organic Products (LOP): This law provides rules and regulations to protect consumers and promotes production and consumption of organic products in Mexico. LOP regulations apply from production to the commercialization of organic products. Under the Law, products must fulfill certain criteria to be considered as organic. For example, organic products must be grown free of the use of pesticides, chemical fertilizers or synthetic chemicals. In addition, organic growers must obtain organic certification to market their products as organic. To learn more on how to meet the requirements of the Law, and to review the manual on graphic identity for the national organic products seal, please visit SENASICA's web site.
Source
USDA GAIN (Global Agricultural Information Network) Original source: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
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*Last updated: 2026-07-18*