To some, the avocado is among the yummiest foods on this planet. Sliced, mashed, infused or spread, avo basically has the ability to make a meal a meal. Thanks to the advent of Pinterest and trendy restaurants serving up natural foods, its popularity has definitely spiked over the past few years. But lately, our go-to fruit (it's technically classified as a berry!) has been in trouble, and the main culprit is water... or lack thereof.
The drought in California has been making headlines over the past few months, but the issue has existed for the past three years. Mandatory cutbacks have been enacted to ration the resource, but things are still precarious, especially for the state's farmers. Since the avocado is native to tropical regions, it thrives in warm and moist environments. In California, where the conditions are anything but wet and moist right now, growing the crop requires much more water than is currently available.
It's true that California isn't the only place in the world that harvests avocados. New York Magazine reports that 85 percent of the avocados consumed in the U.S. come from Mexico and Chile, which seem like more optimal habitats for the crop—but those regions are in trouble too. Because of the increasing demand, these countries have thousands more avocado trees than they did a decade ago. More trees creates a need for more irrigation, so farmers end up exhausting groundwater supply and rivers faster than they can keep up with, according to NY Mag.
It may seem like you're already paying a premium for avocados compared to other fruits and vegetables, but those prices are only going to increase unless the global conditions for its growth take a turn for the better. So the next time you get your hands on an avocado or dig into a bowl of guacamole, hold it a little tighter and enjoy it twice as much!