U.S. demand for most of Mexico’s $3 billion-a-year avocado exports may have fueled deforestation of more than 16 thousand hectares in Mexico in the last decade, according to a report.
Major suppliers to supermarket chains like Walmart and Trader Joe’s have been growing their avocados in areas that in many cases were illegally cleared with fires, according to a report by Climate Rights International and Forest Guardian published this week. As of early 2024, the companies they tracked continued to source from those lands even when they were shown evidence of deforestation in their supply chains, the nonprofits said.
The Mexican Avocado Trade has faced additional scrutiny this year when the United States suspended exports from Michoacán in June after protesters held up agricultural inspectors. An agreement to ensure the safety of inspectors saw shipments resume, but reports show the state continues to be a hub for illegally cleared land for the avocado trade.
Until 2022, Michoacán was the only state authorized to export avocados to the United States. Jalisco was also allowed to participate in the business that year. A report by the United States Department of Agriculture in April stated that Mexico’s avocado production volume is expected to increase by 2020. grow by 5 percent in 2024 after years of explosive growth.
Deforestation in Mexico rises due to avocado exports to the US
The nonprofit’s report shows aerial images of the deforested area compared to satellite images from previous years.
Mexican government records provided to the nonprofit that wrote the report show that between 2023 and April 2024, there were at least 60 examples of U.S. importers, including Calavo Growers, Fresh Del Monte Produce, Mission Produce and West Pak Avocadowhich are supplied with forest land that has allegedly been illegally logged.
In a statement, Calavo Growers said the Mexican Association of Producers, Packers and Exporters of Avocado, of which it is a member, follows U.S. and Mexican laws and it is outside the association’s purview “to determine land use policies beyond those imposed by the Mexican government or international treaties such as the USMCA,” referring to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
He added that academic studies have found that deforestation occurs primarily in highlands where avocados are not grown. The other three companies mentioned in the report did not immediately respond to Bloomberg News’ requests for comment.
