Central de Abasto, Mexico City

The Central de Abasto (Groceries Center) is Mexico City’s main wholesale market for produce and other foodstuffs run similarly to traditional public markets. It was constructed to be the meeting point for producers, wholesalers, retailers and consumers for the entire country. Located in the eastern borough of Iztapalapa, it is the most important commercial establishment in Mexico and the largest of its kind in the world. The market handles over 30,000 tons of merchandise daily, representing 80% of the consumption of the Mexico City metropolitan area. The market was established on former farmland to ease congestion in the historic center of Mexico City, but since then, the city has grown around it, bringing problems with traffic and crime, with robbery and kidnappings being the most serious.

The Central de Abasto is one of the two large wholesale markets in Mexico City, along with the Nueva Viga market, which specializes in fish and seafood. The facility is located on a property that extends 328 hectares (810 acres), with more than 2,000 business that sell principally fruit, vegetables, meat and some processed foods in a main building that covers 85 hectares (210 acres). The project was designed by architect Abraham Zabludovsky. He designed a slightly deformed hexagon shaped building which measures 2,250 meters across. The entrances and exits are located on opposite ends of the building. In addition, there are more than sixty other installations on the property with services such as refrigeration, shipping and more. The center commercializes more than 30,000 tons of food products daily, representing 80% of the consumption of the 20 million people in the Mexico City metropolitan area. This and the Nueva Viga market are the two largest employers in Iztapalapa The market generates 70,000 jobs directly and attends to more than 300,000 people per day. Its distribution network connects with more than 1,500 points of sale, including mercados públicos, tianguis, 380 establishments associated with fifteen chain stores as well as other kinds of commercial centers. The Central de Abasto is the most important food warehouse and distribution center in Mexico and the largest institution of its kind in the world, Although most of the business conducted at the site is between wholesalers and retailers, retail sales still play a significant role.

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