Is it time to dethrone the Hass avocado?

+ UK's refreshingly short campaign season US Edition - Today's top story: Avocados are a 'green gold' export for Mexico, but growing them is harming forests and waters [View in browser]( US Edition | 29 May 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [States attack academic freedom with threats, cuts and mandates]( - [Why France’s Muslim athletes can’t wear a hijab at the Paris Olympics]( - [Insurance companies gum up colon cancer screenings]( Lead story Whether they're mashed on toast, blended in a smoothie or scooped into guacamole, avocados have become a staple in American kitchens. And nearly all of them are Hass avocados grown in Michoacán, a rural state in southwest Mexico. Mexican avocado exports to the U.S. were worth some $2.8 billion in 2023, and demand keeps rising. University of Iowa historian Viridiana Hernández Fernández is writing a book about the development of a global avocado industry centered in Michoacán. Although the crop has enriched growers, it has also driven [deforestation, excessive water use and land grabs](. But there are other tasty types of avocados available. Buying them could encourage Mexican growers to raise other varieties in addition to the omnipresent Hass. [ [Science from the scientists themselves. Sign up for our weekly science email newsletter.]( ] Jennifer Weeks Senior Environment + Cities Editor Harvesting avocados in Uruapan, in the Mexican state of Michoacan. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images [Avocados are a ‘green gold’ export for Mexico, but growing them is harming forests and waters]( Viridiana Hernández Fernández, University of Iowa Avocados are marketed as a superfood, but growing them for an expanding world market has turned a rural Mexican state into an unsustainable monoculture. 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