The other day, I was chowing down on some tacos and realized that they just wouldn’t be complete without one ingredient—guacamole. In fact, it got me thinking about how much I love avocados in general. Avocados have grown to be a favorite of many people around the globe, appealing to Americans in particular. I started wondering about where the avocado in my taco came from and how it ended up being eaten by me.

            The avocado is a tree fruit, and is “thought to have originated in Mexico and Central and South America” (Boriss et al, 1). In 1833, they were first planted in Florida, and then in California in 1856. Today, avocados are commercially grown in California, Florida, and Hawaii; however, America is still the “largest importer of avocados…accounting for 26 percent of world imports” (Boriss et al, 2). The world’s largest exporters include Mexico, Chile, and Spain, which are where we get our imported avocados. Mexico is responsible for about a third of the world’s avocado production. Over half of the imports we bring in from Mexico are processed avocado products (Boriss et al, 2). We import millions of dollars’ worth of avocados, yet we produce over 6.5 percent of the world’s avocados ourselves (Boriss et al, 2). We have no choice but to import if we want to eat as many avocados as we like. The avocado industry in the United States has grown tremendously over the past couple decades in an attempt to keep up with the demand of its citizens.

            Many people in America, including myself, enjoy avocados often, and the number of avocado lovers in the U.S. is increasing every day. The annual per-capita consumption of avocados “has risen 10 percent in the United States over the past decade, and if that trend continues, coupled with population growth, avocado demand will top 2.8 billion pounds by 2020” (Linden). Per capita consumption of this tasty fruit has “followed a variable but generally increasing trend since 1970, increasing significantly in recent years from 1.5 pounds per capita in 1999 to a record 2.5 pounds in 2003” (Boriss et al, 1). Reasons for this recent increase in avocado popularity in America could be due to a couple of factors. Avocados have been marketed as “a healthy dietary choice and as a good source of beneficial monounsaturated oil” (Boriss et al, 1). An increasing awareness of healthier foods and the acceptance of monounsaturated fats, along with a growing Hispanic population in the U.S., have contributed to the recent increase in demand (Boriss et al, 2).

The value of avocado production has been steadily increasing along with the rise in the fruit’s popularity. The value of the avocado industry in the Unites States has been “increasing since the early 1990s, from $118.1 million in 1992 to nearly $400 million in 2003” (Boriss et al, 3). In the most recent years, it has been over $400 million, and is continuing to increase. The goal of farmers is to have this “lofty figure” continue to be reached on an annual basis for many years to come (Linden).   The avocado industry may be nowhere near reaching the same number as seen in the production of tomatoes, apples, and other produce, but they are well on their way. In 2011, California avocado growers produced 300 million pounds, “while the 2012 crop has been projected at 400 million pounds” (Linden). Increasing yields is currently a top priority for American avocado farmers. They are looking into expanding the industry by increasing “tree density per acre and possibly expanding more production to other areas” (Linden). The majority of avocado farms are in the valleys along the western coast of California. There is a “high cost of water and competition for that prime coastal land [which] means there are not a lot of new groves being developed” (linden). While it is more difficult to grow avocados in other climates, it is necessary for farmers to attempt growing crops more inland in order to increase production (Linden).

            It is safe to say that the avocado is a food considered tasty and nutritious by many Americans. It is rapidly growing in popularity and the U.S. avocado industry is trying to expand as much as it can as quickly as it can to satisfy the growing demand, but it seems that this might not be possible due to limited land and water supplies in the areas of America that provide the proper climate for growing avocados. It is safe to say the already massive amounts of avocados we import will continue to grow in coming years and Americans like myself will continue to enjoy guacamole on their tacos.

References

 Boriss, Hayley; Brunke, Henrich; Kreith, Marcia. “Commodity Profile: Avocados.” Agricultural

            Marketing Resource Center. Agricultural Issues Center: University of California.

            February 2006. http://aic.ucdavis.edu/profiles/Avocados-2006.pdf May 8, 2012.

Linden, Tim. “California avocado industry bullish about its future.” The Produce News. April 4,

2012. http://theproducenews.com/index.php/category-list/9-story-cat/7313-california-avocado-industry-bullish-about-its-future May 8, 2012.