On Monday, the USDA said security concerns about agency employees have prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture to suspend inspections of avocados and mangoes imported from Mexico “until further notice.”
Products already cleared for export will not be affected by the decision, but avocado supplies in the United States, which come mainly from the Mexican state of Michoacán, could eventually be affected if inspections are not carried out. continue.
“Inspections will remain suspended until the security situation is reviewed and procedures and safeguards are in place,” a USDA spokesperson said in an email.
The agency did not say what caused the security concerns. But Mexican news agencies recently reported that two USDA inspectors were illegally detained at a checkpoint operated by community members. In Michoacán, which stretches from the mountains west of Mexico City to the Pacific Ocean, some indigenous communities have set up security patrols to defend themselves against criminal groups.
The US Embassy in Mexico confirmed on Monday that the inspectors were no longer in detention.
Julio Sahagún Calderón, president of Mexico’s association of avocado producers and packers, known as APEAM, said in a statement: “The interruption of avocado exports from Michoacán is due to an incident unrelated to the industry.” butter”. He added that the group is working “intensively” with Mexican and US authorities to continue testing avocados from Michoacán.
This is not the first time US safety inspectors have faced security threats in Michoacán, where people are caught in the middle of a brutal war between drug cartels.
In 2022, the United States decided to temporarily block all avocado imports from Mexico after issuing a verbal threat to a safety inspector. The ban has been lift up days after Mexico issued more safety measures for USDA inspectors.
In addition to fighting drug trafficking, gangs also seek to penetrate the legal economy, especially the profitable avocado industryits success was fueled by Americans’ voracious appetite for creamy fruit.
Orchards that produce avocados for export to the United States, along with the packers that process them, must be certified by both Mexican authorities and USDA inspectors.
A USDA spokesperson said the agency is committed to continuing inspections “as quickly as possible.” He said that “avocados and mangoes in transit are not affected” by the suspension “as they have already undergone inspection”.
The popularity and profitability of avocados has caused environmental concerns in Mexico, with avocado orchards popping up in protected areas considered out of bounds for both farmers and loggers. This has led to deforestation and aquifer depletion.
ONE report Last year by Climate Rights International, a nonprofit organization documenting the human rights consequences of climate change, it was found that as of March 2023, the United States and Mexico had certified more than 50,000 avocado orchards. in Michoacán for export.
