Economics
Why Avocados Could Be Cheaper Next Year
Global demand has driven prices to new highs, but nature might ease the pain for consumers.
A Mexican avocado. European and Asian consumers have joined Americans in the trend. Wholesale avocado prices in France rose 23 percent in the first five months of the year.
Photographer: Janelle Jones for Bloomberg Businessweek
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A global obsession with avocados is driving up the price, but nature could help cut costs next year.
Americans ate on average about 7.1 pounds of avocados in 2015-16, more than double their consumption a decade earlier. The demand has led buyers to look beyond California farms—77 percent of the U.S. supply this year will come from Mexico.