Avocado lovers, brace yourselves: cartel violence in Mexico may drive up prices of the popular fruit in the United States after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) suspended its inspections in Michoacán state due to security concerns. This follows an attack on two US embassy inspectors who were assaulted in an avocado field, prompting the suspension last month.
As demand for avocados has surged in the United States over recent years, cartels have shifted their focus from traditional drug and human trafficking to enter the avocado industry, which generates between $3 and $5 billion annually in Mexico. Dr. Mario Dipp of Cetys University explained that “In the southern part of Mexico, the economy is heavily agricultural, so it provides key territory for the Narco to actually gain a foothold, if not control, of entire industries in the region.
Last week, US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar announced that inspections would gradually resume in Michoacán state but emphasized that safety measures must be put in place first. Both parties on both sides of the border are expected to lose millions of dollars as a result of the inspection suspension. Dr. Dipp estimated that the region will lose $7 to $10 million a day during the active suspension period.
Restaurant owners, like Lisa Sotelo, owner of Lisa’s Cocina in San Diego, rely on a steady supply of avocados for their guacamole-based dishes and are concerned that an avocado shortage may impact their businesses if the situation persists. The USDA had previously suspended inspections in February 2022 for about a week when a health and safety inspector received a threatening message, highlighting ongoing security concerns within the industry.
