BREAKING NEWS: Organic Consumers Association and Richman Law & Policy are suing Del Monte and West Pak for the misleading claims they make about how "sustainable" and "responsible" their avocado sourcing is. Please send the companies an email using the form on this page. You can also hit them up on Facebook (@westpakavocado and @delmonte), Instagram (@westpakavocado and @delmontefresh), Twitter (@WestPak_Avocado and @DelMonteFresh) and TikTok (@delmontefoods).
As Climate Rights International has revealed, the forests of Michoacán are being invaded, burned by arsonists and illegally logged to serve our insatiable appetite for guacamole. Not even the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is safe! Deforestation is expected to double by 2050 if Michuacán’s avocado plantations continue to expand.
U.S. companies like Del Monte and West Pak are profiting from the “green gold” rush while turning a blind eye to the devastation caused by the avocado boom.
They can stop the deforestation by refusing to buy avocados grown on recently cleared land.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Del Monte and West Pak To Stop Deforestation!
If your avocado isn’t organic and fair trade (or from California)…
It came from land that was recently, probably illegally, deforested, land that was stolen or cleared in an act of arson, or land that was stripped of its oak-pine forests or oyamel fir trees (the winter roosts of monarch butterflies).
It was irrigated with water siphoned without a permit away from the local community that now can’t grow their own food or bathe and have to buy water, even to drink, or abandon their land altogether.
It traveled a supply chain that involved cartels that extorted “protection money” from the avocado farm or the packer, or hijacked the truck that was taking it to market, or murdered the indigenous forest guardians who spoke out about the stolen land, the burned forest and the siphoned water.
This is why we should only eat California-grown organic avocados and Mexican-grown organic and fair trade avocados.
Fair trade distributor Equal Exchange is doing what U.S. and Mexican regulators and every avocado business should be doing. They’re refusing to sell avocados from recently deforested land. They have an anti-deforestation policy that excludes farms that have been in operation for less than five years.
Besides choosing what we eat more consciously, what else can we do?
Tell the rest of the avocado industry to follow Equal Exchange’s lead and stop buying avocados grown on deforested land.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Del Monte & West Pak to stop deforestation!
Personal Information
*SAMPLE TEXT TO DEL MONTE & WEST PAK*
You will be able to modify this text on the next page, after entering your information.
Dear Del Monte and West Pak,
I’m concerned about the impact of Mexican avocados after reading the New York Times’ report on Climate Rights International’s “Unholy Guacamole” investigation (“Americans Love Avocados. It’s Killing Mexico’s Forests.”) and Reuter's story on CRI's follow-up, "US Avocado Sellers Fail to End Sourcing from Illegally Deforested Land in Mexico" ("Avocado goldrush links US companies with Mexico’s deforestation disaster").
As U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said recently, the United States should place import restrictions on Mexican avocados to prevent companies from profiting from illegal deforestation. Shamefully, the U.S. hasn’t taken action.
One option is for consumers to boycott, refusing to buy anything but organic and fair trade avocados certified by Equal Exchange, which doesn’t sell avocados grown on newly deforested land.
But, it's really up to avocado companies like Del Monte and West Pak to stop this tragedy. You should make the same pledge as Equal Exchange to eliminate deforestation and water theft from your supply chain.
Please do this. If for no other reason than to assure the sustainability of your own business. There just isn’t enough water in Michoacán to increase the avocado acreage.
As the Associated Press recently reported (“Angry farmers in a once-lush Mexican state target avocado orchards that suck up too much water”), the avocado plantations are already illegally taking more than their fair share. Michoacán’s lakes, including Patzcuaro and Cuitzeo are drying up.
Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.
[Your Name]