USDA suspends avocado inspections in Michoacán, Mexico for safety reasons

Shipments already in transit are not affected, nor are checks in other states, a U.S. government spokesman, whose name could not be disclosed due to agency guidelines, told AP.

Mexico is the world’s largest producer of avocados – a staple in the diet of many Americans who enjoy it on their Toast or made into guacamole, especially during the Super Bowl. The United States imported a record 2.78 billion pounds of fresh avocados in 2023, with 89 percent of those imports coming from Mexico, according to the USDA.

Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla told reporters on Monday that he was in constant contact with U.S. authorities to provide guarantees for exports.

Further details on the security incident that led to this decision were not immediately available.

However, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a security alert for the Mexican state on Friday, saying: “Due to recent security incidents in Aranza, Michoacan, the U.S. government reminds U.S. citizens not to travel to the state of Michoacan.”

US government employees in the region have been advised to seek safety, it said.

The State Department warns against travel to Michoacán “due to crime and kidnapping” – the same travel warning also applies to five other Mexican states, including Sinaloa and Zacatecas.

The United States briefly suspended avocado imports from Michoacan in 2022 after a U.S. factory safety inspector received a threatening letter that sparked fears about possible price hikes. At the time, Michoacan was the only Mexican state shipping the fruit to the United States, but neighboring Jalisco has since begun its own exports to the north.

As the Washington Post reported in 2022, for decades until the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, it was forbidden to import avocados from Mexico into the United States. There were fears that weevils, scab and other pests could infect U.S. suppliers. Now, U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors ensure that the fruit is pest-free before import.

In recent years, avocados have been one of Americans’ favorite fruits and caused great concern for many during the U.S.-Mexico border disputes. In 2019, President Donald Trump’s threat to close the border with Mexico sparked widespread fear, media reports and memes about the prospect of an avocado shortage.