Southern Arizona’s fast-paced border community serves as one of biggest imported fresh produce distribution regions.
The accessibility from the port of entry to warehouses, cold rooms, and highways makes the Nogales community a competitive state for incoming commodities.
Not only is infrastructure important for Nogales, but also for agriculture sectors around the nation, which along with the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA), recently signed a letter highlighting how food and agriculture would benefit with passage of a Biden Infrastructure package.
Closer to home, Governor Ducey’s funding for road work projects and the support of the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) have placed southern Arizona and the border community as an industry leader. By designating funding for infrastructure improvements, Nogales has seen improvements in time of travel, traffic flow and accessibility for commercial vehicles.
The FPAA has supported many of the projects that have been completed and those that are currently under construction including support for improvements on Exits 12 and 17 on Interstate 19, the State Route 189/Mariposa Road project and support for designated funding in the state and federal budgets for infrastructure leading to and from ports of entry. The FPAA and its members have been part of support letters addressed to both state and national stakeholders and have actively participated in planning committees to ensure that the industry’s needs are addressed.
“The fresh produce industry continues to be a jobs driver in Southern Arizona,” said FPAA President Lance Jungmeyer. “If we want to keep the economy humming, we need to invest in the roads that move our vital goods including food.”
Jungmeyer noted that Arizona has strong leadership in Congress when it comes to infrastructure.
“Senator Sinema and Senator Kelly are big believers in infrastructure, and so are Represenatitives Grijalva and Kirkpatrick,” Jungmeyer said. “Every bit of roadway for Southern Arizona in effect helps the whole state and the nation better facilitate trade.”
Good infrastructure projects are the result of close collaboration between transportation officials, local community members and businesses impacted by the projects. The FPAA understands the importance of providing feedback as projects are being planned and implemented. The FPAA stays in close contact with member companies and ADOT to make the construction process as smooth as possible.
Infrastructure improvements are crucial for the success of rural communities. The Nogales commercial port of entry had over 153,000 trucks cross through the USA/Mexico border in 2020. Ensuring that routes are efficient and safe help Southern Arizona continue as a competitive business region.
