US halts avocado imports from Mexico after inspector threatened

WASHINGTON — Holy guacamole!

The U.S. government suspended imports of avocados from Mexico after one of its inspectors in the nation’s principal producing state received a threatening phone call, multiple media outlets reported.

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According to Mexico’s Agriculture Ministry, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service halted inspections in Michoacán on Friday, just two days before Super Bowl LVI, traditionally a peak guacamole consumption period in the United States, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Although the ministry did confirm to the Journal that a USDA inspector in Michoacán received a threatening call on their official phone, the threat was not detailed.

Meanwhile, the inspection service characterized the incident as a verbal threat against one of its employees, the newspaper reported.

“The suspension will remain in place for as long as necessary to ensure the appropriate actions are taken, to secure the safety of APHIS personnel working in Mexico,” the service stated.

According to Reuters, all U.S.-bound avocado crops must be inspected for safety, and those approved before Feb. 11 could still be exported.

Michoacán’s avocado growing regions are also gangland battlegrounds, and avocado producers there are frequent targets of extortion activity by the gangs, the Journal reported.

Michoacán has been exporting its Hass variety of avocados to the U.S. since 1997, and is the only Mexican state approved to ship avocados to the U.S. The estimated value of Mexican avocados shipped to the U.S. in the first 11 months of 2021 totaled $2.5 billion, representing a roughly 20% increase from the prior year, the newspaper reported.

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