After a temporary ban was placed on avocados from Mexico, experts are warning that prices will likely rise and supply may be limited in the …
After a temporary ban was placed on avocados from Mexico, experts are warning that prices will likely rise and supply may be limited in the coming weeks. After a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector received a threat, the department suspended investigations of avocado crops coming into the country from Mexico. According to data from the Hass Avocado Board, about 80% of the U.S. supply in 2021 came from Mexico. «The longer this suspension is in force, you will probably see some disruption,» said Tom Stenzel, co-CEO of the International Fresh Produce Association. «If this goes on for several weeks, you will start to see gaps.» Stenzel said there’s no way to predict how long the suspension will last, but if it’s longer than a few weeks, it’s likely that avocados will come in from other countries such as Peru, so there won’t be an immense shortage. «You’re not going to see bare shelves,» he said. «People are going to have some amount of avocados, it just may be shorter supply.» In terms of pricing, Phil Lempert, editor of the website SupermarketGuru.com, says there’s «no question» that the cost of buying avocados at the supermarket will increase. «They’re not going to have product, and the product that they do have, there’ll be some opportunistic pricing,» Lempert said. On the eve of Super Bowl Sunday, the USDA announced that it all avocado sales from the western region of Michoacan in Mexico were suspended, after an inspector for the department received a verbal threat on his cell phone.
