Mexico City government wants to protect 'mercados'

A new bill aims to ban supermarkets from operating near traditional markets in the city

By BRONSON PETTITT

Mexico Weekly / April 5, 2011

The Mexico City government says it wants to ban new supermarkets and department stores from opening near traditional markets.

City Hall will send a bill to the Federal District Legislative Assembly (ALDF) to impose rezoning regulations in areas near certain markets.

City officials say the bill, if passed, will only apply to new supermarkets and department stores, not those already operating near traditional markets.

The extent of the bill is unclear, since it does not define how close a supermarket or department store can open from a traditional market. It is also unclear how many of the 318 existing markets would be affected by the bill.

At a Monday press briefing, Leticia Bonifaz, the city's legal adviser, said supermarkets will not be allowed to be build in neighborhoods where traditional markets play an important role in the lives of residents.

Bonifaz cited the case of the southern Xochimilco and Tláhuac boroughs where residents prevented certain stores from setting up shop.

“The central areas of neighborhoods in each borough and their markets, parks, churches ... must be protected [from supermarkets],” Bonifaz said.

Curb Supermarket, Department Store Influence

The proposal comes as Wal-Mart has announced ambitious expansion plans. Last year, Walmart de México (Walmex) opened 267 stores in Mexico, 147 of which were Bodega Aurrerá Express stores (mini supermarkets).

Markets are an important part of daily life in some areas of the capital. La Merced, in central Mexico City, is one of the largest markets in Latin America and sells just about everything Mexican.

Nearby is the Sonora Market, famous for its herbal and witch remedies and even the sale of live, endangered animals. Also downtown is the San Juan Market that sells exotic meats, fruits, vegetables and other imported products.

Mercado Medellín, in the Roma neighborhood, offers South American products, while the extensive Mercado de Plantas Cuemanco in Xochimilco sells plants and flowers native to Mexico.

The proposed bill is meant to curb the influence of supermarkets and department stores in areas where traditional market culture thrives.

The bill would affect chains such as Waldo’s (similar to a dollar store), Wal-Mart and its subsidiaries (Sam's Club, the discount chain Bodega Aurrerá and Superama, which carries higher-quality products), Comercial Mexicana (and its subsidiaries Mega and Sumesa) and Soriana.

Critics of these chains say they unfairly compete with traditional markets.

According to its website, Walmex operates 134 stores in Mexico City. Soriana has 27 stores in the capital, and Comercial Mexicana (including Sumesa and Mega) has 42 stores. Waldo's has 27 locations.

Not A Ban

“We aren't going to ban [supermarkets]; it's important that they continue to operate in the city, but not next to neighborhood markets so as not to create unfair competition,” Assemblywoman Alejandra Barrales told reporters Monday during a tour of the Jamaica Market in central Mexico City.

Mayor Marcelo Ebrard says he also supports the measures.

“We want markets to survive and prosper, because more than 80,000 families work in markets,” said Ebrard, who accompanied Barrales on Monday.

Barrales said the ALDF is also considering extending the measures to convenience stores.

Chains such as Oxxo, 7/11, Circle K and Extra are increasingly ubiquitous in Mexico City.

However, Bonifaz said convenience stores are not considered a direct threat to markets, since they offer fewer items and have longer operating hours.

For its part, the Association of Supermarkets and Department Stores (ANTAD) is preparing to aggressively lobby City Hall to reconsider parts of the bill, according to the business gossip column Desbalance in Tuesday's edition of El Universal.

According to the column, ANTAD argues the measures would harm growth of supermarkets.

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