The USDA on June 17 paused inspections of mangoes and avocados in Mexico after agency inspectors were reportedly held and physically assaulted.
According to a report in Axios.com and other media outlets, two USDA inspectors in Uruapan, Mexico, (the state of Michoacán) were among a group reportedly caught in a road blockade led by community police forces. The inspectors were detained and beaten while traveling with trucks carrying avocados, according to the local media reports referenced by Axios.
On June 19, the USDA sent The Packer a statement about the inspection pause:
“Due to security concerns for Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) personnel in Michoacán, APHIS has paused inspections of avocados and mangos in Michoacán until further notice. The programs will remain paused until the security situation is reviewed, and protocols and safeguards are in place for APHIS personnel. Mexican exports are not blocked: the pause of the inspection programs does not affect avocados and mangos in transit.”
The USDA suspended avocado inspections and imports in February 2022 for a week after an agency inspector in Mexico was threatened with violence. Any prolonged suspension this season could disrupt U.S. avocado supply and sharply increase prices. Mexico accounts for nearly 90% of the U.S. avocado supply annually.
