He began his fishing activity in 1968 by acquiring the assets of the State company “Industria Pesquera de Oaxaca”, and since then, he has become a relevant figure in the development of fishing in Mexico.
In 1980 he was invited by the Federal Government to participate in the incipient tuna industry, and for that, he ordered the first vessels to be built in Spain through the company Maratún, S.A. of C.V.
In 1982, when the construction of its vessels was completed, the tuna fleet was semi-paralyzed due to the tuna embargo decreed by the United States against Mexican tuna. This political situation led Don Antonio Suárez to send his fishing vessels to the Atlantic Ocean.
In 1984, already with the experience acquired and at the same time knowledge of the European market, he brought his boats back to Mexico, placing his base in the port of Ensenada, Baja California, and opened exports of Mexican tuna to Europe.
At the same time, he established the Mexican Association of Tuna Producers, A.C., to which he presides, and ensures that the industry is free from the pressure of the tuna embargo imposed by the United States.
Maratún significantly increased its fleet through various associations and acquisitions, and by 1988 it was already considered the largest tuna vessel owner in the world. Operatún S.A. de C.V., a company member of the same group, was in charge of the operation.
In 1990, a second embargo was imposed by the United States and as a consequence, the group had to get rid of a large part of its fleet and decided to integrate vertically, establishing the company Marindustrias for this purpose. Through a loan from the Foreign Trade Bank, it acquired large fishing facilities in the port of Manzanillo, the most important in Mexico.
2000
From this, equipment was modernized and the Tuny® canned tuna brand was created, which in 2000 was already one of the most consumed brands in Mexico.
Since the eighties, he was a great fighter, in the company of the Mexican Government, on the issue of the tuna embargo, and in 1998 the international courts of the World Trade Organization ruled in favor of the Mexican tuna industry, worthily championed by our president and founder.
Among his distinctions are:
- Order of the Aztec Eagle, awarded by President Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de León.
- Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit awarded by the Spanish government.
- Commendation of Number of the Order of Isabel the Catholic, awarded by the Spanish government.
- Recognition Plaque as “Exemplary Entrepreneur” awarded by the Government and People of the State of Colima.
- Medal of Asturias, awarded by the Government of the Principality of Asturias, the region where he was born.
- Various recognitions from institutions such as the Anáhuac University and the University of Oviedo in Spain.
