Mexico to allow wheat imports from U.S. regions free from Karnal bunt

Mexico to allow wheat imports from U.S. regions free from Karnal bunt    The Mexican government has recognized wheat-growing areas of California, Arizona, Texas and New Mexico to be free of Karnal bunt.
   Karnal bunt is a fungal disease of wheat, durum, and triticale, a hybrid of wheat and rye, and is spread mostly through the movement of infected seed.
   Mexico instituted a ban on the regions after the first detection of Karnal bunt in the United States is 1996. Mexico ranks as the United States’ third-largest overseas market for wheat, setting a record high sales of $459 million in 2004.
   Several areas in these U.S. states remain regulated by Mexican agricultural authorities. They are parts of Riverside County in California; La Paz, Maricopa and Pinal counties in Arizona; Archer, Baylor, Knox, San Saba, Throckmorton and Young counties in Texas.
   As part of the agreement with Mexico, the U.S. Department of Agriculture also recognized five Mexican states as meeting the requirements for Karnal bunt-free status. They are Chihuahua, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michocan and Querefaro. These states are in addition to the Mexicali Valley in Sonora and Baja California that have been recognized as Karnal bunt-free since 1998, the USDA said.