Growing on the Line
Nogales’ history as a city and crossroad began in 1882 at the junction of two railways, one connecting to Guaymas, Sonora, the other to St. Louis, Missouri. As the only viable route from Tucson, Arizona to Mexico, the settlement of Nogales boomed. Because of the railroad, mining operations prospered in both Sonora and Arizona, creating more capital and more jobs. As the first rail link between the U.S. and Mexico, Nogales, the city on “the line,” as the border is still called, became an international trade center, generating and sharing resources on both sides of the line.

The produce industry, too, benefited from Nogales’s role as a center of trade. In 1905, the local paper, The Border Vidette published an article on the very first Mexican produce to be grown in Sonora and shipped over the border. Two carloads of melons planted by Mexican farmers near the railroad just north of Hermosillo were shipped to Colorado. In 1908, the paper ran another article about the first tomatoes being shipped from Guaymas to Tucson. That winter, and every winter since, American consumers could enjoy Mexican tomatoes.

From that first year on, Mexican farmers began providing American distributors and retailers with many kinds of fresh produce, shipping, first by rail, and after 1950, by truck, via Mexico’s new West Coast highway. Shipping by truck assured the quality of the Mexican produce going across the line. With every truck carrying a particular customer’s load, close, careful inspection was now possible. This was ever so important, as it allowed the Mexican produce industry to truly compete with other suppliers. In 1962, when the U.S. enacted a trade embargo with Cuba, the Mexican growers and distributors could increase their capacity while maintaining quality equal to or higher than produce cultivated in the U.S.

A major milestone in the development of the industry was the establishment of the Fresh Produce Association of America (FPAA)—originally, the West Mexico Vegetable Distributors Association. Founded in 1944 and headquartered in Nogales, Arizona, the association’s role has become increasingly vital. Currently, the FPPA provides a powerful and unified voice for more than 125 companies involved in the growing, harvesting, marketing, and importing of Mexican produce. The association’s presence ensures an unimpeded flow of healthful, high-quality Mexican produce through several ports of entry to the United States.

By the mid 1960s, so many distribution companies existed along the border at Nogales that truck traffic had become a problem. The West Gate (Mariposa Crossing) was built as a solution. Over the last forty years, the produce industry has continued to develop, as have agricultural and shipping technologies. In 1905, it was big news when a handful of farmers shipped two railroad cars of melons from Sonora to Arizona. Today, the industry brings more than 4 billion pounds of vegetables and fruits, annually, across the line in Nogales, so families all over America can enjoy fresh Mexican produce all year long.