La agroindustria del agave tequilero Agave tequilana Weber

In Jalisco, the "mezcal azul" Agave tequilana Weber grciws in 43 000 hectares of non-irrigated farmland representing 153.6 mi Ilion plants belonging to 2 500 owners. The industry of tequila employs 23 202 persons in Jalisco and produces 70 million liters per year, exporting 90% in bulk to the United States and the remainder to more than 40 countries. The traditional cultivation system has barely been studied and has been changing in the last decade, especially to a monoculture with an excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, but the consequences of their use have not been evaluated. Some producers consider as an advantage the decrease by one to two years in the crop period, but the majority acknowledge productivity and environmental costs. Small growers are losing the agave market due to surplus agave production and their incipient social organization.