Criminal extortion targets Mexico food supply and industrial corridors

Organized crime groups have increasingly infiltrated Mexico's food supply chains and industrial corridors, utilizing extortion, kidnapping, and money laundering to control economic hubs. In the Central de Abasto (CEDA) in Mexico City, the largest food market in Latin America, multiple cartels including the CJNG, La Unión Tepito, and La Familia Michoacana are reportedly engaged in territorial disputes.

Criminal factions such as “Los Volteados” are accused of using psychological terror, including sending photos of merchants' children to demand payments ranging from 5,000 to 150,000 pesos. Other groups, like La Unión Tepito, reportedly extort transporters by stealing merchandise and demanding millions of pesos under threat of kidnapping. Authorities have also discovered narcotics tunnels connecting commercial warehouses to facilitate drug distribution.

According to an analysis by México Evalúa, extortion is heavily concentrated in the country's primary economic zones, including the Center, Bajío-Occidente, and Northern regions, which account for 85% of victims. While victims in priority states under the National Strategy Against Extortion decreased by 13% between 2025 and 2026, extortion rates in other parts of the country rose by 30%. This trend impacts manufacturing, the automotive industry, and agricultural sectors, potentially driving up consumer prices and affecting national competitiveness.