Jalisco is about to get certification from the Department of Agriculture (USDA) so that the avocado producing municipalities can export the fruit to that country directly.
According to the Official Journal of the US in February this year, the USDA will certify other Mexican avocado growing municipalities, prioritizing Jalisco, which are already recognized as free of quarantine pests.
The penetration of Jalisco’s avocado into the US market represents the entry into a market worth over 800 million, since the neighboring country accounts for 80% of Mexican avocado exports.
According to the laws of the United States, following the publication in the Official Journal, there is a consultation period between the productive sectors of about 180 days, and if the US producers raise no objections, avocado imports from Jalisco would get the green light.
Multi-million harvest
According to data from the Ministry of Rural Development, even though Michoacan leads avocado production in the country, the farms in Jalisco have six times higher productivity than those in Michoacan.
While the orchards in Michoacan have an average of 100 trees per hectare, the most technologically advanced orchards in Jalisco have up to 600 per hectare.
The harvest of this fruit has taken much relevance in the state. In 2000, Jalisco had 1,000 hectares devoted to the production of avocado; today they have 16,000.
Besides being more cost effective than traditional crops, such as corn and sugar cane cultivation, avocado production represents an opportunity for agricultural producers to conquer international markets. Only in 2014, Jalisco produced 87,000 tons of avocado, 30% of which was exported, mainly to Japan and Canada.
Source: eleconomista.com.mx