US suspends avocado imports from Mexican state due to safety incident, local media reports

US suspends avocado imports from Mexican state due to safety incident, local media reports

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MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The U.S. government has temporarily suspended imports of avocados from Mexico’s largest growing state, Michoacan, since last Saturday. The reason for the suspension was a security incident involving U.S. inspectors, according to a report published on Monday by the Mexican newspaper El Universal.

Citing unnamed avocado exporters, the report said the duration of the suspension has not yet been determined as talks between U.S. agriculture authorities and local producers are still ongoing.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Embassy in Mexico did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In 2022, U.S. authorities temporarily halted shipments of avocados from Michoacán, a state that has long suffered from gang violence, citing safety issues faced by inspectors.

(Reporting by Christian Plumb and Lizbeth Diaz; Editing by Chris Reese and Stephen Eisenhammer)