Avocado prices sit in limbo depending on Trump's tariffs
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Enjoy the guacamole at your Super Bowl party this weekend because it could be more expensive by the summer.
Driving the news: On Monday, the U.S. and Mexico agreed to a month-long pause on implementing tariffs, which temporarily averts a 25% levy with huge economic implications for both countries.
State of play: 90% of the avocados consumed in the U.S. are imported from Michoacán, a state in western Mexico, University of Iowa professor Viridiana Hernández Fernández tells Axios.
- Avocado prices would likely rise 15%-20%, or about 15 to 50 cents each, in grocery stores if the 25% tariff is enacted. Restaurants, especially those making fresh guacamole, would suffer from the price jumps.
- In Michoacán, the tariffs would be "catastrophic," Hernández Fernández says. Most avocado farms are family-owned and selling to the U.S. is their sole source of income.
Details: Farmers would need to find another market besides the U.S., but that could be difficult for the easily bruised, perishable fruit, she says.
What they're saying: Paul Rottenberg, president of Orchestrate Hospitality, behind restaurants like Centro and Bubba, tells Axios the potential tariffs introduce economic uncertainty for Iowa's restaurant industry, which heavily depends on Mexican produce.
- "The key thing is it's too early to tell," he says.
The bottom line: "Holding off on the tariffs for the Super Bowl this Sunday definitely guarantees guacamole for the big game! Still, the underlying issue remains," Hernández Fernández wrote in an email.