Mexico announces food and agriculture plan that could take the country back to the 1980s

Mexico’s new president announced an agriculture plan Tuesday that could make the country’s food production and distribution look a lot more like it did in the 1980s, when meals in Mexico were dominated by tortillas, beans, instant coffee and cheap hot chocolate.

Four decades ago, the ingredients for those meals were often bought at government stores that stocked a few basic goods.

President Claudia Sheinbaum pledged Tuesday to revive those often shabby, limited government stores and continue efforts to achieve “food sovereignty.”

“It is about producing what we eat,” Sheinbaum said of her policy, whose main focus will be on increasing bean and corn production.

Sheinbaum appears to have a deep interest in boosting beans. On Monday, she said, “It is much better to eat a bean taco than a bag of potato chips.”