New Department of Agriculture figures show per capita consumption of avocados has tripled since 2001, jumping to 8 pounds per person in 2018.
The growing demand has led to increased prices for the fruit, which benefits producers in the U.S. even as Mexico’s production skyrockets. According to USDA’s Economic Research Service, total U.S. avocado production in 2018 was 364 million pounds, 93% of which came from California. Prices for those avocados grew 22% between 2011 and 2018.
The majority of avocados consumed in the U.S. are imported, and the majority of those come from Mexico. That country overtook Chile as the dominant supplier of imported avocados in 2007 and now supplies 89% of fresh avocado imports, but Mexican avocado shipments tend to decline in the summer. Peru, the second largest supplier of imported avocados, tends to see increased shipments to the U.S. during the summer, ERS noted.
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