Dark Clouds Over Mexico's “Green Gold.” Will Guacamole Become a Luxury Delicacy?

In the Mexican state of Michoacán, it is called “green gold” because they make a fortune from it, but the fever that has gripped the place is becoming a growing threat. “About eight or ten years ago, it was wilderness. Everything was covered in forest. It was all wilderness, but then the avocado producers came, cut it all down, and now they have orchards,” says Savas Melchor Gomez, director of environmental affairs at the Madero Municipality.

Mexico accounts for more than 30 percent of the global avocado harvest. Demand for avocados is constantly growing, which means more and more space is needed to grow them. According to data from Guardian Forestal, an organization fighting deforestation, 300 square kilometers of the state of Michoacán and its surroundings have been transformed into orchards in the last decade. That's almost as much as the entire area of ​​Wrocław. Many of these areas have been illegally taken over by criminal cartels.

– People are facing criminals. This will lead us to war if the government does not put an end to it, says Savas Melchor Gomez.

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People are being forcibly displaced. Some of them are seeking refuge in the United States. “We want peace and security. We didn't have it in Mexico. We kept getting messages: we know where you are, we're sending people to you. In such a situation, it's hard to even leave your home with your child,” says Mayra Pena, a victim of displacement due to the cartel's activities. “These people are being forced to leave their country not because of a lack of work, but because of the lack of opportunities for a normal life in Mexico,” says Brigite Baltasar, a human rights activist.

However, this is part of a complex problem. Fruits need an exceptional amount of water to grow. To produce a kilogram, or about three pieces of fruit, you need – depending on conditions – up to 2,000 liters of water. Mexican law does require a permit for water use and the construction of reservoirs, but increasingly dangerous areas full of armed men cannot be controlled.

– We use satellite images, infrared images and advanced technology to detect areas where there has been a change in land use. The images and reports are automatically sent to the prosecutor's office. It is not a person looking at a screen, but a robot with artificial intelligence that sends them to investigators and the Federal Environmental Protection Agency, says Alejandro Mendez, Secretary of the Environment of Michoacán state.

The situation is so serious that the United States, the main recipient of avocados with Mexican passports, has been suspending imports from time to time. A month ago, again, due to an attack in Michoacán on inspectors from the US Department of Agriculture. Imports resumed a week later.

– The Mexican government's plan is to work hand in hand with us to ensure that every one of our employees is safe and able to perform their duties, said Ken Salazar, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico.

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Mexican officials plan to create an online platform that will allow people to check the legality of a product's origins, primarily whether it was grown in an area designated for this purpose. “We are asking the market and consumers to help us. They will decide whether they want to buy – in a sense – stolen goods,” says Alejandro Mendez.

Activists, local officials and researchers have doubts whether it is possible to correctly identify the fruit.

– It is not enough to just look at satellite images showing forest areas. We suffer from water theft, planting avocado trees under other trees. An environmental certificate cannot be based solely on satellite data showing where forests used to grow. This is a good step, but it is not complete, it is very superficial – the environmental activist points out.

According to official data, avocado exports to the United States have increased by 48 percent since 2019. The value of exports of the green gold to this country alone amounted to $3 billion last year.