U.S. avocado imports cut chemical use, reduce nitrogen pollution by 10%

If you live in America and love guacamole, there is a good chance the avocados in your bowl came from Mexico. What is surprising is that the rules used to bring those avocados into the United States may also have helped clean up nearby waterways in Mexico.A 202 analysis titled 'Agricultural trade policy and water quality: evidence from the Mexican Hass Avocado Import Program' by Wiliam Townsend suggests that stricter U.S. import requirements introduced in 2016 pushed avocado growers to reduce routine chemical use, which in turn lowered nitrogen pollution in surrounding waters by about 10%.In other words, a trade policy designed to regulate imports may have delivered an unexpected environmental benefit too.A trade deal with a bigger impact than expectedIn 2016, the United States expanded avocado imports from across Mexico, but only under strict conditions, as per reports. To export to the U.S., orchards had to meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s production standards, pass repeated inspections, and provide phytosanitary certificates confirming the fruit was free of target pests such as avocado weevils and fruit flies.Before that change, only Michoacán could export avocados to t...