---
title: Avocado Prices Have Doubled in the Last Year and Show No Signs of Slowing Down
description: Is guacamole too popular? Avocado consumption has increased in the U.S., China, and Europe, causing prices to rise in Mexico, California, and beyond.
authors:
  - name: Brad Tuttle
    role: Senior Editor
    url: https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/
    bio: Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals.
    education: Columbia University School of Journalism, MS
    at_money_since: 2014
    articles: 366
    covers:
      - Economy and Politics
      - Banking
      - Business
      - Career Advice
      - Credit
      - Credit Cards
      - Education
      - Health and Wellness
      - Housing
      - Identity Theft
      - Insurance
      - Investing
      - Lifestyle
      - Loans
      - Mortgages
      - Personal Finance
      - Pets
      - Professional Services
      - Retirement
      - Shopping
      - Taxes
      - Technology
    social:
      - https://twitter.com/bradrtuttle
      - https://linkedin.com/in/brad-tuttle-834b225
    former_staff: true
published: '2017-05-01T15:23:09.000Z'
modified: '2024-05-16T12:22:36.000Z'
section: Economy and Politics
tags:
  - avocados
  - fruit
  - groceries
  - grocery prices
  - import tax
  - Mexico
  - Supermarket
word_count: 392
canonical: https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

> **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/).

![Guacamole](https://img.money.com/2017/05/avocadoprices-em-150019195.jpg)

The world's avocado supply has been spread super thin lately—and prices are soaring as a result.

As more people are drawn to avocados for their flavor and [health benefits](https://time.com/4738249/avocado-metabolic-syndrome/), consumption of [the popular superfruit](https://time.com/3922680/avocados-cancer-study/) has spiked in the U.S.: Americans consumed 6.5 pounds per-capita in 2015, up from 3.5 pounds in 2006.

[Bloomberg reports](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-28/guacamole-costs-to-jump-as-avocado-shortage-sparks-record-prices) that demand for avocados has surged in China and Europe as well, and prices for avocados from Mexico—where over two-thirds of avocados eaten in the U.S. come from—have increased significantly. The wholesale price of a box of avocados is "more than double what it was a year earlier and the highest in data going back 19 years," *Bloomberg* wrote.

In the U.S., California is the leading producer of avocados and a [heat wave last summer](https://time.com/4389855/a-major-avocado-shortage-might-hit-for-4th-of-july-weekend/) hurt production - further adding to the price hikes. In some cases, supermarket [prices for avocado prices doubled](https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase/) in less than six months last year. A single avocado [cost around $2](http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2016/10/18/holy-guacamole-price-of-avocado-skyrockets-now-being-called-luxury-fruit/) in some parts of the country, up from less than $1 not long beforehand.

Prices are expected to remain exceptionally high at least until fall of 2017, when the next crop of avocados from Mexico should be ready to be spooned into guacamole.

Even if it's a great year for Mexican avocado crops, however, consumer prices could skyrocket further if a much-discussed import tax is applied to goods coming into the U.S. from Mexico. The Trump administration has publicly discussed the possibility of an import tax for months, and the U.S. imports more strawberries, avocados, tomatoes, onions, chili peppers, and raspberries from Mexico than it does from any other country. If these goods are taxed as they enter the U.S., the higher costs will inevitably be passed along to grocery shoppers.

Then again, if California farmers have anything to say about it, homegrown avocados may rapidly be on the rise soon. Right now, the most popular kind of avocado can only be grown in southern California at certain times of year. But [NPR reported](http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/04/27/525737123/california-is-on-its-way-to-having-an-avocado-crop-year-round) recently that farmers are experimenting with new breeds of avocados that could be grown year-round all over the state.

At least two new varieties are expected on the market within a year or two. Will they be tasty enough, and will there be enough of them to meet consumer demand? We'll have to wait and see—or rather, taste.

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "@id": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/#breadcrumb",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "Home",
          "item": "https://money.com"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "Economy and Politics",
          "item": "https://money.com/economy-and-politics/"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Food Industry",
          "item": "https://money.com/food-industry/"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 4,
          "name": "Avocado Prices Have Doubled in the Last Year and Show No Signs of Slowing Down"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebSite",
      "@id": "https://money.com/#website",
      "url": "https://money.com",
      "name": "Money",
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#organization"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/#webpage",
      "url": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/",
      "name": "Avocado Prices Have Doubled in the Last Year and Show No Signs of Slowing Down",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/#website"
      },
      "datePublished": "2017-05-01T15:23:09.000Z",
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "breadcrumb": {
        "@id": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/#breadcrumb"
      },
      "dateModified": "2024-05-16T12:22:36.000Z"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Article",
      "headline": "Avocado Prices Have Doubled in the Last Year and Show No Signs of Slowing Down",
      "articleSection": "Economy and Politics",
      "image": [
        {
          "@type": "ImageObject",
          "url": "https://img.money.com/2017/05/avocadoprices-em-150019195.jpg",
          "width": 5136,
          "height": 3424,
          "caption": "Guacamole"
        }
      ],
      "author": [
        {
          "@type": "Person",
          "name": "Brad Tuttle",
          "url": "https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/",
          "@id": "https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/#author",
          "description": "Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals.\r\n\r\n",
          "image": "https://img.money.com/2014/01/Brad-Tuttle.png?w=226&h=247&crop=1",
          "alumniOf": "Columbia University School of Journalism, MS",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://twitter.com/bradrtuttle",
            "https://linkedin.com/in/brad-tuttle-834b225"
          ]
        }
      ],
      "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization",
      "datePublished": "2017-05-01T15:23:09.000Z",
      "description": "Is guacamole too popular? Avocado consumption has increased in the U.S., China, and Europe, causing prices to rise in Mexico, California, and beyond.",
      "abstract": "Is guacamole too popular? Avocado consumption has increased in the U.S., China, and Europe, causing prices to rise in Mexico, California, and beyond.",
      "@id": "https://money.com/avocado-prices-increase-mexico-import-tax-california/",
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "dateModified": "2024-05-16T12:22:36.000Z",
      "wordCount": 392,
      "keywords": [
        "avocados",
        "fruit",
        "groceries",
        "grocery prices",
        "import tax",
        "Mexico",
        "Supermarket"
      ],
      "about": [
        {
          "@type": "Thing",
          "name": "Political economy",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_economy"
          ]
        },
        {
          "@type": "Thing",
          "name": "Food industry",
          "sameAs": [
            "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_industry"
          ]
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
```
