A farmer picks avocados in the municipality of Uruapan, Michoacan, Mexico, in 2004. File Photo by Ivan Villanueva/EPA
Aug. 6 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture has temporarily suspended inspections and certification of new avocado shipments from the Mexican state of Michoacán, the country's largest avocado-producing region.
The suspension followed a security alert issued by the U.S. Embassy in Mexico warning of an imminent threat to U.S. interests and American agricultural inspectors working in the region.
The move disrupts a supply chain that provides the vast majority of avocados consumed in the United States. Mexico accounts for about 40% of global avocado production and exports more than 1 million metric tons annually to the United States.
A similar disruption occurred in February 2022, when the United States temporarily suspended avocado imports from Michoacán after a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector received a threatening message while conducting inspections in Uruapan.
