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MEXICAN AGRICULTURE OFFICIAL LOSES JOB AFTER URGING FARMERS TO EMULATE BUSINESS STRATEGY OF DRUG CARTELS.

Article Excerpt
A high-level Mexican agriculture official lost his job after suggesting to representatives of farm organizations that they follow the business strategies of the drug cartels to improve their marketing positions. The comments from assistant agriculture secretary Jeffrey Max Jones created an uproar in Mexico, where the government is embroiled in a highly visible and often-violent campaign to control the drug cartels. Jones' departure might also be an attempt by the Mexican government to maintain good relations with the US, which provides funding for Mexico's drug-interdiction efforts. The US has seen a surge in activity by the Mexican cartels within its own borders. In late October, US authorities announced the arrest of more than 300 people known to be associated with the Michoacan-based cartel known as La Familia.

Agriculture ministry calls comments "unfortunate"

Jones was undersecretary of agribusiness promotion at the Secretaria de Agricultura, Ganaderia, Desarrollo Rural, Pesca y Alimentacion (SAGARPA) when he made the controversial comments at a forum in Mexico City in late October. "Drug traffickers represent a sector that has learned to identify its market and develop the appropriate logistics for distribution," Jones told the audience. "We have to follow that...

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