U.S. Temporarily Bans Avocados From Mexico, Citing Threat

Some individuals now include it in every meal, whether it is on toast, in a salad, or in a burrito. The creamy fruit might, however, become more difficult to locate in the future.

In response to a verbal threat made against American safety inspectors in Mexico, the US decided late last week to temporarily ban all imports of avocados.

U.S. Temporarily Bans Avocados From Mexico, Citing Threat

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U.S. Temporarily Bans Avocados From Mexico, Citing Threat

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s suspension will be “for as long as necessary,” according to representatives of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, “to guarantee the necessary steps are implemented, to secure the safety of APHIS staff operating in Mexico.”

According to economists, even a two-week restriction on avocado imports from Mexico, which supplies 80% of the avocados consumed in the US, could have a substantial effect on avocado supply and drive up costs.

Michoacan, Mexico’s sole avocado-producing province, will no longer be able to export avocados to the United States, which is a horrible development. There, exports of green fruit total around $3 billion annually. The great majority of those avocados are sold in the United States.

Threats against agency personnel were not made public, but drug gangs in the area have been interested in the avocado sector for some time because they are trying to diversify their sources of illicit income as they have grown more dispersed.

Falko Ernst, a Mexico analyst for the nonprofit International Crisis Group, recalls a conversation he once had with a leader of organised crime who boasted about how much money he was making off avocados ten years ago. These populations have been drawn to the area by the great concentration of economic prosperity there.

Additionally, it has been Claimed that Mexican Gangs have Curtailed Lime Production and Shipments in an Effort to Drive up Prices.

In an effort to keep collaborating with Mexican and American authorities to restart avocado exports, the Mexican Avocado Exporters’ Association, which represents 29,000 farmers and 65 packing facilities, said its board of directors conducted a meeting to discuss security procedures and protocols.

One of avocado’s greatest events, the Super Bowl, was approaching when the prohibition was made public. The avocado industry’s Cinco de Mayo celebration may also be impacted, depending on how long it lasts.

After weevils, scabs, and other pesticide-resistant organisms were introduced to the country by imported avocado goods, Mexican avocados were outlawed in the US in 1997.

U.S. inspectors in Mexico are helping to expand Mexico’s avocado market by ensuring that the fruit transported to the United States is pest-free at every stage of the process, from the farms to the transportation networks to the shipping regions.

It was “a great narrative about how a group of agricultural merchants and farmers used scientific ways to limit insect danger and enable trade where there would ordinarily be an opportunity,” said Mr. Orden.

Last Words

According to Mr. Ernst of the International Crisis Group, if the “warning shot” of a temporary ban develops into something more long-term, it will have an impact on the economy and make it simpler for criminal organisations to recruit new members.

According to Mr. Ernst, the marijuana sector supports a lot of law-abiding families. When their means of support are taken away, they fall into the hands of criminal organisations.