Mexico City, Mexico, August 10, 2026 – Avocado inspections and export shipments have restarted across most of Michoacán under a permanent Mexico-U.S. security arrangement backed by 1,557 Army and National Guard personnel.
President Claudia Sheinbaum said Monday that 45 packing plants had reopened after threats against U.S. inspectors prompted Washington to withdraw personnel and halt new export approvals last week. The Mexican government reported separately that 75 percent of Michoacán’s packing plants had been cleared to operate, representing about 85 percent of the state’s avocado export sales.
The U.S. Embassy began a partial return on Saturday in Tancítaro, Tacámbaro, and Uruapan, as well as the corridor connecting Morelia and Pátzcuaro. The embassy said the decision followed security commitments from Mexico and an assessment of measures implemented across the avocado-producing region.
The inspections are a required step in the export chain. Mexico’s National Service of Health, Food Safety and Agro-Food Quality certifies participating orchards, while inspectors from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service examine fruit at approved packing facilities before it can enter the United States.
Only Michoacán and Jalisco are authorized to ship Mexican avocados into the U.S. market under that program, according to USDA’s 2026 avocado outlook. The suspension applied to Michoacán operations and did not close Jalisco’s export program. Michoacán produced about 2.04 million metric tons in 2025, compared with nearly 277,000 metric tons in Jalisco.
Washington suspended activities in Michoacán on Wednesday after issuing an alert tied to a threat against U.S. interests. The Association of Avocado Producers and Packers Exporters of Mexico initially limited processing to fruit that had already arrived under USDA supervision, and no new export shipments were authorized that day.
Sheinbaum said Monday that inspectors later disclosed they had received threats. She also said Mexican officials had not been notified before the United States withdrew its personnel and suspended operations.
Representatives from Mexico’s foreign relations and security ministries subsequently met with U.S. Ambassador Ronald Johnson. The two governments agreed to keep a security table operating permanently, with protections covering inspectors, growers, packing employees and transportation routes.
The federal deployment includes 900 Army troops and 657 National Guard members positioned near orchards, packing facilities and major roads. Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla said the reopening would proceed in stages as security conditions were reviewed. He is scheduled to meet Tuesday with Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch to assess the operation and advance the remaining plant reopenings.
This is the third security-related interruption of U.S. avocado inspections in Michoacán since 2022. A threatening call directed at an inspector halted the program in February 2022. Two inspectors were temporarily detained in June 2024, leading to another suspension and a security protocol designed to anticipate threats and respond to attacks. PVDN reported that the 2024 agreement was reached when inspections resumed after a pause lasting more than a week.
The trade exposed to these interruptions has continued growing. USDA expects Mexico to export 1.31 million metric tons of avocados during 2026, up seven percent from last year. Nearly 90 percent of that volume is expected to enter the United States.
Mexican Agriculture Ministry figures show that shipments to the United States reached 501,824 metric tons between January and April, an increase of 35 percent over the same period in 2025.
The Mexican Hass Avocado Association said existing inventory and fruit already moving through the supply chain should meet near-term demand. Mexican officials expect the remaining packing plants to resume operations during the week as inspectors return under the reinforced security plan.
