"We hope that the negotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA, allow us to continue trading avocados as we've been doing it up until now because it has been very beneficial for the American consumer," the strategic advisor for the Association of Producers and Exporting Packers of Avocado from Mexico (APEAM), Ramon Paz, told Efe.
He said that the agreement, which has been in force since 1994 and that the new US president, Donald Trump, intends to renegotiate or leave, "has created jobs and wealth in the United States and has been very beneficial for exporters and the population of Mexico in general."
"However, if there is a problem we will have to return to the scheme used before the treaty were we would pay a tariff of six cents per pound,which wouldn't really affect us as no other country can supply the US with the large amount of avocados they need throughout the whole year," he said.
The specialist said that more than 50% of American households consume avocado, and that Mexico provided 80% of that total.
"If they put any obstacles, they would have to continue importing Mexican avocados, so what would happen is that the product's price would increase for the American consumers," he said.
He also said this would not affect demand. "Consumers won't stop buying the product if prices increase or decrease a little. It is a stable demand. Prices would increase by a few cents per fruit, so they would continue to be accessible to the consumers," he added.
Therefore, he insisted, a commercial potential obstacle "would be counterproductive because the US government could collect the money from a tariff, but ultimately it would be the US consumers that pay it, so they would be affecting their own people."
Paz also highlighted the strong growth that avocado consumption had in the United States, as it had gone from 300 grams per person per year to three kilos per year, and sales of more than one million tons.
According to the expert, this increase is largely due to the promotion made by producers, as well as to studies about the avocado's properties.
"It is a very nutritious and healthy product, it's consumption has no negative effects,"he said.
As a result, exports increase by double digit each year, as demand increases, he said.
Regarding the strategy that producers would follow if the US government imposed tougher conditions on imports, he said that the first thing would be to promote and defend the current trade conditions.
"The association has also been developing other markets for several years, such as Japan, Canada (third NAFTA partner), Europe, Central and South America, and more recently China," he said.
He acknowledged that they were relatively small markets compared with the US, but producers have been conducting promotion campaigns in them.
"Europe is a market that has grown much over the past three years, particularly France, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Mexico had withdrawn a little from this market because of the importance of the United States. Demand grew so much that it absorbed us," he said.
According to the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food, Mexican avocado exports to the world increased by 18.6% between January and November 2016, when compared to the same period of the previous year.
Mexico is the largest producer of avocados in the world, as it produces seven out of every 10 avocado fruits in the world.
Paz emphasized that the diversification strategy preceded the onset of Trump on the international horizon.
"We had already realized that it was strategically necessary to diversify our exports. It is not good to be so dependent on a single market," the adviser said, adding that, despite these efforts, the US market still offered them the best conditions.
Source: EFE