Congressman Gonzalez’s Statement on the Closure of Texas’s Only Sugar Mill

SANTA ROSA, TEXAS – Today, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34) released the following statement regarding the decision by the Board of Directors of the Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers, Inc., to shut down operations after more than 50 years.   

"The decision to close Texas’s only sugar mill will not just negatively impact our region’s economy and agriculture industry but it means that our country will lose one of its 10 remaining producers of raw sugar,” said Congressman Gonzalez. “I understand that this decision was not made lightly as agriculture in South Texas depends on a reliable water irrigation supply. Because the U.S. State Department has failed to hold Mexico accountable for severe delays in delivering water as required by the 1944 Treaty, producers and employees of the mill will lose their livelihoods. I expect the effects of this closure and the looming water crisis to be felt by growers across our region and implore USDA and the State Department to take immediate action. "  
 
Mexico is obligated to deliver an average of 350,000 acre-feet annually every five years as outlined in the 1944 Water Treaty. The current delivery cycle of water to the U.S. began on October 25, 2020. As of February 10, 2024, Mexico has failed to provide the full 774,707 acre-feet of water still owed, delivering only 378,855 acre-feet of water three years into the cycle.

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