The U.S. Department of Agriculture had temporarily halted inspections and certification of new avocado shipments from Mexico on Aug. 5 after the U.S. Embassy issued a security alert. File Photo by Francisco Guasco/EPA
Aug. 13 (UPI) — All U.S. government activities in the western state of Michoacán have resumed, including inspections needed for avocado exports to the United States, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico said Thursday.
U.S. Ambassador Ronald Johnson said trade started again after the Mexican government implemented additional security measures and U.S. authorities evaluated the situation to be secure.
However, the diplomatic mission warned that the state remains under a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” advisory, the most restrictive designation in the State Department’s travel advisory system.
“U.S.-Mexico cooperation delivers results: Full resumption of U.S. government activities in Michoacán,” Johnson said in a post on X announcing the decision.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture temporarily halted inspections and certification of new avocado shipments Aug. 5 after the U.S. Embassy issued a security alert.
The alert cited what U.S. authorities considered an imminent threat to U.S. interests and agricultural inspectors amid systematic extortion by organized crime targeting Michoacán’s agricultural sector.
Rapid negotiations between the U.S. Embassy and the Mexican government led to a joint plan that allowed operations to resume this week, Mexican newspaper El Universal reported. The security plan was central to the U.S. decision to lift the suspension.
Mexico deployed 1,500 members of the Army and National Guard to protect producing orchards, escort cargo trucks and safeguard farmworkers, transporters and USDA inspectors.
After the deployment, the United States authorized inspections and packing operations to start again Monday at 45 packing facilities in designated areas of Michoacán. More than 60 other packing plants had remained under evaluation until Thursday’s announcement.
The full resumption provides relief to local producers and could help stabilize the livelihoods of thousands of families in Michoacán who depend on avocado cultivation, harvesting and packing.
Mexico is the world’s largest avocado producer and supplies 92% of the avocados imported by the United States, meaning an extended disruption in shipments could affect supplies and push up prices in the U.S. market.
USDA statistics show the United States imported 730,395 metric tons of avocados during the first half of 2026, up 17% from the same period in 2025. Mexico supplied 670,026 metric tons of that total, a 34% year-over-year increase, Mexican newspaper La Jornada reported.
In November, the Mexican government made security in Michoacán a top priority after the killings of Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo and citrus growers’ leader Bernardo Bravo, both of whom had denounced pressure and extortion by criminal groups.
Mexican Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch said Tuesday that the government’s “Michoacán Plan for Peace and Justice” had resulted in 950 arrests, digital news outlet El Heraldo de México reported.
García Harfuch said the security operation has prioritized combating criminal groups involved in extortion and the collection of illegal protection payments from avocado and lime growers, packers and transporters.
Among the most significant arrests were 12 suspected extortionists linked to a remnant of the Knights Templar cartel and Ramón Ángel “N,” known as “El R1.”
Authorities have identified him as the suspected mastermind behind the killing of the former Uruapan mayor and as a major source of violence targeting the region’s agricultural sector.
