Avocado imports from Mexico were suspended on the eve of the Super Bowl today, becoming the latest victim of the cartel battles.
Avocado exports are the latest victim of the drug cartel turf battles and extortion of avocado growers in the western state of Michoacan, the only state in Mexico fully authorized to export to the U.S. market.
The import ban came on the day that the Mexican avocado growers and packers association unveiled its Super Bowl ad for this year. Mexican exporters have taken out the pricey ads for almost a decade in a bid to associate guacamole as a Super Bowl tradition. It was only in 1997 that the U.S. lifted a ban on Mexican avocados that had been in place since 1914 to prevent a range of weevils, scabs and pests from entering U.S. orchards.
After a previous incident in 2019, the USDA had warned about the possible consequences of attacking or threatening U.S. inspectors.In August 2019, a U.S. Department of Agriculture team of inspectors was"directly threatened" in Ziracuaretiro, a town just west of Uruapan. While the agency didn't specify what happened, local authorities say a gang robbed the truck the inspectors were traveling in at gunpoint.
On September 30, 2020, a Mexican employee of APHIS was killed near the northern border city of Tijuana.
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