FAIRS Country Report Annual - Registration Measures and Specific Standards
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)
Registration Measures and Specific Standards
Section VI. Other Requirements, Regulations, and Registration Measures While no facility registrations are required by the GOM, exporters of certain products must comply with the applicable Mexican import regulations, which include being a USDA-approved facility in the case of animal proteins, for example. Please refer to the Mexico FAIRS Export Certificate Report to determine which U.S. authority pertains to a certain product, and if facility registration is a requirement for the export of that product. The Mexican importer of record has the responsibility to obtain import permits for products that require a permit from COFEPRIS. This permit allows importers to introduce into Mexican territory food, food supplements and non-alcoholic beverages that comply with Mexican current sanitary legislation, for their commercialization, distribution, and for further food production processes. Upon product arrival to Mexican territory the customs broker responsible for clearing the product must present the corresponding Certificate of Analysis (COA). In general, COAs
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must include physical, chemical, and microbiological analysis by an accredited laboratory in the country of origin, per product lot in the consignment. However, depending on the product to be imported, specific analysis must be submitted, as appropriate. For edible fishery products from contaminated seas (e.g. North Sea): analysis or determination of heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury). For fresh and frozen edible fishery products from Central American, South American, and Asian countries where infection with Vibrio cholerae occurs analysis or determination of Vibrio cholerae. For edible oils and fats: analysis or determination of Peroxide Value. For food products from countries or zones affected by nuclear accidents: certificate indicating a maximum of 370 (three hundred and seventy) becquerels per kilogram of radioactive contamination for milk intended for human consumption, dairy products and food products intended for infants during the first four to six months of life and a maximum of 600 (six hundred) becquerels per kilogram for all other agricultural products intended for human consumption. Please review this DOF publication for a complete list of products requiring import permits from COFEPRIS. Current cost of the import permit is $6,220.00 Mexican pesos and the time to receive a response is 5 working days once the information requested by COFEPRIS has been submitted. Detailed information can be found here. Products subject to SALUD's health regulations were modified several times in 2015, 2016, and 2018. Section VII. Other Specific Standards/Laws Food and agricultural products exported to Mexico are subject to documentary and physical inspection at a port of entry to ensure the proper implementation of import requirements. A. Plant‐Based Meat and/or Dairy Alternatives Like many countries, Mexico is a growing market for existing and emerging plant-based meat and dairy alternatives. Labeling regulations for such products can be found in the amendments to the Mexican Official Standard NOM-173-SE-2021-Denominations-Specifications-Commercial Information and Test Methods for Prepackaged Non-Alcoholic Beverages with Fruit or Vegetable Content. For detailed information on NOM-173, and for NOM-051 labeling regulations for food that must be labeled as “IMITACIÓN/Imitation” please read Section II of this paper. FAS/Mexico is not aware of other applicable regulations nor initiatives currently in Mexico´s Congress for the regulation of Plant‐Based Meat and/or Dairy Alternatives. B. SADER Import Requirements for Plants and Animals As noted above, imports of live animals (including aquatic) and plants, animal and plant products, and by-products must comply with SADER requirements, as enforced through SENASICA. SENASICA inspectors at the port of entry ensure that agricultural and food products imported into Mexico comply with applicable requirements. Current import regulations for animals, animal by-products, and plants are included in SENASICA's online system: Animal and animal by-products Plant and plant products C. Novel Foods (Bioengineered) Mexico’s biotech regulation is the Biosafety Law, which was published in the DOF in March
- This law regulates the research, production, and marketing of GE and GE-derived
products. Mexico’s Biosafety Law and its Implementation Rules (bylaws) are designed to promote the safe use of modern biotechnology and prevent and control the possible risks
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associated from the use and application of biotechnology products to human health, plant and animal health, and environmental well-being. COFEPRIS is responsible for the approval of GE products for consumption. COFEPRIS does not differentiate between food and feed use; approvals granted cover both categories. Under the Biosafety Law, COFEPRIS has a maximum of six months to issue a resolution once a completed application has been submitted. As of July 2025, only two applications are under review within this statutory timeframe. All accepted applications must be published in the National Register of Biosafety (NRB). Between 1995 and May 2025, Mexico authorized a total of 226 GE events for food and feed use including:
Corn – 111 events Soybean – 32 events Cotton – 46 events Alfalfa – 4 events Rice – 1 event Rapeseed (Canola) – 16 events Potato – 9 events Tomato – 3 events Lemon – 2 events Sugar Beet – 1 event Soybean Leghemoglobin – 1 event (a phytoglobin found in nitrogen-fixing root nodules of leguminous plants, used in alternative protein products)
On February 5, 2025, the Government of Mexico published in the DOF an agreement rescinding key measures for genetically modified corn. The bill came into effect on March 18, 2025.
D. Organic Products Mexico's certification requirements for bulk/raw organic product imports entered into force on January 1, 2022. The list of affected products, listed by harmonized tariff system code (HTS) was published in December 2020. Processed products are also subject to the requirements in the Mexican Organic Products Law (LPO) to be marketed/sold as organic in Mexico. E. Agricultural and Food Samples Mexico requires that imported samples meet the same regulations as commercial shipments. Post encourages readers to contact their Mexican counterparts for additional information. Imports of product samples for animal use or consumption fall under the importing establishment's responsibility or distributors approved by SENASICA. Please refer to the guidelines established for products for animal use or animal consumption. Food, food supplements, and non-alcoholic beverages not approved for commercialization in Mexico can be imported as samples or for personal consumption through the issuance of an import license and following current sanitary
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legislation and other applicable import requirements. Please follow the guidelines defined for products for human consumption. Section VIII. Geographical Indicators, Trademarks, Brand Names, and Intellectual Property The Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), protects products elaborated through traditional processes, which are linked to customs of specific geographical areas and that are recognized as having an important historic and cultural heritage as well as geographical indicators, that identify a product as being from a specific region, or locality in the country, when its quality, reputation or other attributes are due to its geographical origin. For more information regarding geographical indicators please consult Chapter 1-Article 36 of the Federal Law of Industrial Property. Trademarks, patents, and industrial designs are considered "Industrial Property" in Mexico. The safeguards fall under Mexico's Law of Industrial Property (Ley Federal de Proteccion a la Propiedad Industrial). Trademarks are protected for ten years and can undergo a renewal process for an unlimited number of ten-year periods. Trademark applications in Mexico are not subject to legal challenges. Once the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI) grants a copyright, the Law prevents the registration of brand or trade names that are confusingly identical to or similar to trademarks already filed for similar products or services. On average, it takes two and a half years to cancel a trademark registration, and the registrant can use the mark for a year following cancellation. Companies interested in registering a trademark must contact the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), an independent agency under the Secretariat of Economy. U.S. exporters of food and agricultural products may contact the Office of Agricultural Affairs or the
Source
USDA GAIN (Global Agricultural Information Network) Original source: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
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*Last updated: 2026-07-18*