Francisco Del Toro, a Passaic business owner who serves as the president of the American Mexican Regional Chamber of Commerce, said disrupting business trade between the U.S. and Mexico is not the way to fight drug trafficking.
“A public health crisis should not be addressed with trade sanctions,” he told BINJE. “It is unacceptable to blame Mexican trade for the opioid crisis facing the U.S.
“The fight against drug trafficking should be joint, intelligent, and based on bilateral cooperation, not on protectionist measures that harm working families, farmers, transporters, and small and medium-sized enterprises in both countries.”
Del Toro is the co-owner of La Providencia, a boutique that sells authentic goods from Mexico that celebrate Mexican culture — one of the many New Jersey-based companies that helps the state do nearly $11 billion in trade with Mexico.
Del Toro was contacted by BINJE after the Trump administration announced in letters posted Saturday that goods from Mexico (as well as the European Union) would face a 30% tariff.
The Trump administration said the tariff was in reaction to what they said was Mexico’s inability to control the flow fentanyl (a powerful synthetic opioid) and other drugs into the U.S.
By the numbers
The economic trade between New Jersey and Mexico is higher than you may realize, according to the American Mexican Regional Chamber of Commerce. Consider:
$10.9 billion: In 2023, the state of New Jersey did $10.9 billion in trade with Mexico (importing $7.6 billion worth of Mexican products – while exporting $3.3 billion).
$650 million: The 20 founding members of the AMRCC combine for annual revenues of more than $650 million.
The American Mexican Regional Chamber of Commerce, in a statement, said the latest tariff threat would be devastating to businesses in both countries.
“This unilateral and punitive measure threatens to destabilize one of the most important and solid trade relations on the continent,” it wrote. “In 2024 alone, bilateral trade between Mexico and the U.S. exceeded $860 billion, positioning Mexico as the number one trading partner of the United States.”
Del Toro told BINJE the latest tariff threats coming from the White House amount to “psychological terrorism.”
“If these tariffs are enforced, they will have an immediate impact on our business community for the second time in six months,” he said. “This persistent threat, which is still racist, is causing mental distress for all of us involved in business with Mexico.”
Del Toro words came after the AMRCC issued a statement calling for unity.
“We issue an urgent call to business leaders, legislators, governors and fair-trade advocates in both countries to express their opposition to this measure,” the group said. “The shared prosperity of our nations cannot be compromised by unilateral pressures or electoral decisions.
“The future of North America lies in cooperation, not confrontation.”
The American Mexican Regional Chamber of Commerce was launched this spring to express the interest of those involved in trade – and to be able to address issues such as this.
And while it began as a regional chamber, one that aimed to serve businesses from Boston to Washington, D.C., its launch has spurred a handful of other such chambers in the region.
