U.S. halts Mexican avocado imports after security alert
by Macarena Hermosilla · UPIAug. 6 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture has temporarily suspended inspections and certification of new avocado shipments from the Mexican state of Michoacán, the country's largest avocado-producing region.
The suspension followed a security alert issued by the U.S. Embassy in Mexico warning of an imminent threat to U.S. interests and American agricultural inspectors working in the region.
The move disrupts a supply chain that provides the vast majority of avocados consumed in the United States. Mexico accounts for about 40% of global avocado production and exports more than 1 million metric tons annually to the United States.
A similar disruption occurred in February 2022, when the United States temporarily suspended avocado imports from Michoacán after a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector received a threatening message while conducting inspections in Uruapan.
The inspections resumed about a week later after U.S. and Mexican authorities implemented additional security measures to protect inspection personnel.
The new suspension of phytosanitary inspections, a mandatory requirement for shipments entering the United States, immediately halted the flow of avocados from Michoacán. About 85% of avocados sold in the United States come from orchards in the Mexican state, and annual trade exceeds $3.65 billion.
In a statement published Wednesday by Mexican media, the Association of Avocado Producers and Exporting Packers of Mexico said it had requested meetings with the administration of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to address the security situation and coordinate measures aimed at minimizing the impact on the industry.
Michoacán Gov. Alfredo Ramírez said in a video posted on social media that the suspension is a strictly preventive measure triggered by recent federal arrests targeting extortion networks.
Ramírez said the state's Civil Guard and federal security forces have increased patrols in avocado-producing areas to protect international inspectors and restore normal trade as soon as possible.
The urgency reflects the industry's importance to both countries. Often referred to as "green gold," the avocado sector is one of Michoacán's main economic drivers. The state accounts for about 75% of Mexico's avocado exports and supports more than 300,000 jobs. The United States remains its most important export market.
The dispute underscores the growing influence of organized crime in Mexico's agricultural sector.
Research by InSight Crime has documented how criminal organizations, including the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the New Michoacán Family and local criminal cells, have expanded beyond drug trafficking by systematically extorting agricultural producers in Michoacán.
According to the organization, criminal groups impose mandatory fees on cultivated land, influence purchase prices and use violence to intimidate inspectors, transport operators and business owners.
The extortion affects every stage of the supply chain, from farm workers and orchard owners to packing facilities and trucking companies transporting avocados to the U.S. border. Those who refuse to pay risk kidnapping, arson or murder.
InSight Crime said the avocado industry's profitability has fueled violent territorial disputes across Michoacán, where rival criminal groups compete for control of producing municipalities to secure extortion revenues.
The Attorney General's Office of the Mexican state of Michoacán has laid bare the scale of organized crime's illicit business, saying extortion of the agricultural sector generates enormous sums of money that amount to a criminal industry.
According to the Attorney General's Office, just two high-ranking operatives of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and allied criminal cells each collected between $385 million and $578 million annually through extortion payments targeting the avocado industry and other businesses in key municipalities such as Uruapan.