SOMIS, California — Andreas Tompros lost his home and at least a third of his avocado orchard to a wildfire last year, but the 47-year-old producer is confident his property will recover.
While California farmers frequently highlight the obstacles they face, such as high labor costs, water limitations, and international competition, many avocado growers believe they are doing well. A key factor may surprise some: Mexican imports.
When the United States lifted its embargo on Mexican avocados in 1997, California growers were initially concerned that the imported fruit would displace their own production.
However, producers believe that the consistent flow of avocados has helped, rather than hindered, their sales by providing a year-round supply to markets and restaurants, which has fueled demand. Avocados were considered niche items by most American customers prior to the invasion, and when they were available in California, industry executives had to work hard to generate public interest in order to sell them successfully.
But not anymore
Avocado consumption has increased dramatically in the United States during the last two decades. According to federal figures, the amount of fruit available per person increased from 2000 to 2021, reaching more than 8 pounds (3.6 kilograms). Avocado toast and guacamole are popular dishes not only in culinary hotspots like New York City, but also in cafes across the Midwest and South.
Avocado is in demand
On a high, sun-soaked hillside northwest of Los Angeles, Tompros is rebuilding over 300 avocado trees, hoping that Americans’ appetite for the fruit — and his orchard — will expand.
“It will come back, and I believe it will become better than it was,” Tompros, who formerly operated a software company in Hollywood, said of the orchard he took over five years ago in the little village of Somis.
Avocado demand has also been boosted by customers’ increasing interest in healthy fats, according to Emiliano Escobedo, executive director of the Hass Avocado Board.
A statute passed in the United States in 2000 established the board, which collected 2.5 cents for every pound (0.5 kilogram) of avocados imported or produced in the country. The board utilized the funds to market avocados and conduct nutritional studies, which is largely credited with making the fruit more common in shops and on restaurant menus.
“It’s been incredibly successful. Richard Sexton, distinguished professor of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California, Davis, stated that it earns significantly more revenue than most other industry boards. “When you look at the growth rate in avocado consumption relative to all fruits, the difference in growth rate is dramatic.”
A successful crop
According to Escobedo, over 60% of U.S. homes already purchase avocados, with roughly half of these accounting for the vast bulk of consumption, indicating that there is still opportunity for the industry to expand, particularly in the Northeast, where the fruit is less widespread.
“There is a lot of opportunity for certain groups of people to increase their purchasing of avocados,” Escobedo said.
While the Trump administration has threatened tariffs on a number of Mexican goods, avocados have thus far been spared. California growers said they want Mexican avocados to continue pouring into the nation, but they also want rigorous US inspections to keep pests out and protect their crop.
“If you’re going to farm in California, avocados are about the best deal right now,” says Ken Melban, president of the California Avocado Commission.
According to Melban, California farmers produce over 10% of the avocados consumed in the United States, accounting for nearly all of the country’s domestic avocado production. The fruit is mostly grown in California from April to September, with Mexican imports arriving year-round to meet national demand, which surpasses what the state’s farmers can produce, he said.
Many growers in Southern California’s Ventura County have switched to avocados after lemon prices were slashed by cheaper imports from Argentina. Korinne Bell, agricultural commissioner for the county northwest of Los Angeles, predicts that as newly planted trees yield fruit in a few years, avocado production in the region will increase.
A thriving market, despite flames.
