The US temporarily banned avocado imports from Mexico. Take a look inside the country's biggest avocado-producing region.

Marielle DescalsotaFeb 18, 2022, 15:02 IST

In this October 1, 2019 photo, a farmhand harvests avocados at an orchard, near Ziracuaretiro, Michoacan state, Mexico.Marco Ugarte/AP

Michoacan is at the center of Mexico's booming avocado industry, producing five-and-a-half billion pounds of the fruit annually.
The state exports 80% of the avocados bought in the US.

This is Michoacan, a state in western Mexico. Its capital, Uruapan, has been called 'the avocado capital of the world,' per the Yucan Times.

A Map of Mexico.Google Maps

The state produces half of all avocados in the world, per the World Economic Forum.

Picture taken on October 18, 2016 of an avocado orchard in Zirahuen, in the Mexican state of Michoacan.RONALDO SCHEMIDT / Staff / Getty Images

Michoacan is one of the few places in the world where avocados grow all year round.

In this Oct. 1, 2019 photo, a farmhand harvests avocados at an orchard, near Ziracuaretiro, Michoacan state, MexicoMarco Ugarte/AP

Michoacan consists of several small farming towns, including Tancitaro, where some 30,000 people live.

Aerial view of Cheran, Michoacan state, Mexico, on December 10, 2019.Pedro Pardo/AFP/Getty Images

Many of these farming towns are under threat from cartels, who are seeking control of the lucrative avocado industry.

Members of the self-defense group Pueblos Unidos carry out guard duties in protection of avocado plantations, whipped by drug cartels that dominate the area, in Ario de Rosales, state of Michoacan, Mexico, on July 8, 2021.Enrique Castor/AFP/Getty Images

Many residents have fled Michoacan because of the mounting cartel violence.

The remnants of campsites where families from the Mexican state of Michoacan had been camped out are pictured at Chamizal Park near Bridge of the Americas on December 19, 2019 in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.Paul Ratje/AFP/Getty Images

Despite the state's thriving avocado industry, many people still live below the poverty line.

Children remain inside "La Gran Familia" shelter.Hector Guerrero/AFP/Getty Images

Michoacan has a significant Indigenous population.

Members of the Purepecha ethnic group take part in the "Fuego Nuevo" (New Fire) celebration.Enrique Castro/AFP/Getty Images

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