The Dark Side of America's Avocado Obsession: Devastating Mexico's Forests

The booming demand for avocados in the United States is fueling illegal deforestation in western Mexico, leading to the loss of forests, depletion of aquifers, and a spike in violence. Criminal gangs, landowners, corrupt officials, and community leaders are involved in clearing forests for avocado orchards, often seizing privately owned land. The deforestation for avocados violates Mexican law, but little action has been taken to address the issue. Mexican environmental officials have called on the United States to stop importing avocados from deforested lands, but no action has been taken. The $2.7 billion annual avocado trade between the two countries casts doubts on their climate pledges.