2025 Colombia

The Hass Avocado Boom as a Catalyst for Socio-Natural Regime Transitions in the Global South: Insights from Northern Caldas, Colombia

Authors: Suarez, Andres

"The global hass avocado (Persea americana ""Hass"") market has seen significant growth in recent decades, driven by increasing demand in key markets such as the United States, the European Union, and China (Denvir et al., 2021). Mexico is the world's leading producer and exporter, accounting for more than 40 percent of global production (Caro et al., 2021). However, other countries, including Peru, Chile, and Colombia, have expanded their market share through intensive production strategies and

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2025 Peru

Avocado production in different biomes throughout Peru: do differing cultivation practices translate into differences in environmental impacts?

Authors: Elorrieta-Mendoza, Alvaro,; Sanchez-Matos, Joan; Bentín, Jorge; Debrock, Sébastien; Mathot, Claire; Stelian, Louis; Soengas, Beatriz; Kahhat, Ramzy; Vázquez-Rowe, Ian

PURPOSE: Avocado production in Peru takes place in different biomes and under different agricultural systems (e.g., conventional, organic, or agroforestry). Therefore, it is important to understand differences in the environmental profile of avocado production within the diversity of these cultivation systems. Hence, the main objective of the study was to conduct a cradle-to-gate attributional Life Cycle Assessment of avocado production in Peru by small and medium-sized producers, under multiple

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2024 Mexico

Functional leaf-trait variability and herbivory in oaks along a Mexican avocado agrosystem mosaic

Authors: Vaca-Sánchez, Marcela Sofía; Espírito-Santo, Mário M.; Maldonado-López, Yurixhi; Oyama, Ken; Pérez-Solache, Abel; Lopes de Faria, Maurício; Zazá Borges, Magno Augusto; Fernandes, G. Wilson; Cuevas-Reyes, Pablo

Land-use changes transforming forested landscapes to avocado orchards affect abiotic conditions and ecological processes. As a consequence, such changes can also affect leaf functional traits expression of co-occurring trees in orchards and related plant–insect interactions. Here, we evaluated changes in chemical soil properties and the effects of micro-climatic variables on leaf functional traits and herbivory in Quercus castanea and Q. obtusata in fragments occurring in a mosaic with avocado orchards.

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2024 Spain

Identifying Optimal Zones for Avocado (Persea americana Mill) Cultivation in Iberian Peninsula: A Climate Suitability Analysis

Authors: Domínguez, Antonio ; García-Martín, Abelardo ; Moreno, Eduardo ; González, Encarnación ; Paniagua, Luis L.; Allendes, Gonzalo

In recent decades, the cultivation of avocados (Persea americana Mill) has expanded throughout the Iberian Peninsula, with most of the production occurring on the Southern Atlantic and Mediterranean Coast, as well as in the Canary Islands. This expansion is due to high demand and high prices, which have made the crop very attractive. However, climatic suitability criteria have not always been followed, putting sustainability at risk. Avocados originate from tropical and subtropical areas and have

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2024 Colombia

Critical overview of the expansion of Hass avocado plantations in Salamina, northern Caldas, Colombia

Authors: Suarez Andres

This paper sheds light on the broader impacts of high-value commodity crops in the tropics by examining critically the rapid expansion of Hass avocado plantations (HAP). Using Salamina as a case study, this paper provides empirical evidence of local impacts and highlights the need for more sustainable and equitable governance strategies to manage emerging socio-economic and environmental challenges. HAP are transforming Salamina's traditional landscape by seizing considerable areas for avocado cultivation

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2022 California

Losing Aguacate: What If Water Costs Kill Avocado Farming in San Diego County?

Authors: Balikian, R.; Genskow, K.

San Diego County is categorized as urban, yet it was one of only three counties in the United States with over 5,000 farm operations in 2017. While continuing to expand its urban area, the county lost farmland at the rate of 3.8% every year between 2002 and 2017. By several measures, avocado production is the county's most important crop, and avocado groves account for about 30% of all crops planted there. Avocado acreage is also declining rapidly in the county, at about 3% each year. To understand

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