{"text":[[{"start":8.38,"text":"Mexico sent more than 1,500 soldiers into its avocado heartlands on Thursday after exports of the fruit to the US were stopped because of security problems in the region."}],[{"start":20.384,"text":"The US embassy in Mexico on Wednesday suspended its activities in the state of Michoacán, where most of the country’s avocados are grown, due to “a threat against American interests”."}],[{"start":30.78,"text":"In response, Mexico’s defence ministry said on Thursday it had sent 1,557 soldiers from the army and National Guard to different parts of the state to reinforce security across the industry and prevent extortion of avocado producers."}],[{"start":46.68,"text":"It is the third time since 2022 that the US government has kept its inspectors out of the region, which is a hub for organised crime groups, over concerns about violence."}],[{"start":57.06,"text":"The decision is unwelcome news for Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum, who has touted a fall in national homicide rates and taken a more confrontational approach to organised crime than her predecessor."}],[{"start":69.66,"text":"Mexico is the world’s largest producer of avocados and it exported more than 1mn tonnes, worth more than $3bn, to the US in 2025 with an estimated two-thirds coming from Michoacán state alone."}],[{"start":83.82,"text":"The previous US suspensions lasted about a week and hit wholesale prices, with limited alternative supplies available from Jalisco state, California and Peru."}],[{"start":93.62,"text":"Sheinbaum said on Thursday that she had met with avocado producers from the state and was working on a plan to reinforce the security presence in the producing and packing areas."}],[{"start":103.82,"text":"“We’re putting together an important work plan to further guarantee security in some areas where there wasn’t as much National Guard presence,” she said in her morning news conference."}],[{"start":113.66,"text":"She added that she had asked for a meeting with the US government to bring back the inspectors or, if necessary, replace them with Mexican government ones."}],[{"start":121.38,"text":"“It’s not the first time it’s happened and we hope that it’ll reactivate soon,” Sheinbaum said."}],[{"start":127.02,"text":"In a letter to its members, Mexico’s Hass Avocado Association said it “does not anticipate this temporary operational pause will have meaningful impact on market supply”."}],[{"start":136.68,"text":"The avocado industry is deeply embedded in territory controlled by organised crime and there are systemic links between the two. Extortion of legal producers is common, and there are widespread reports of groups seizing land and industry workers being killed and kidnapped."}],[{"start":152.74,"text":"Carlos Manzo, who was mayor of the municipality of Uruapan in Michoacán and a vocal critic of cartel extortion, was shot dead at a public event in November. His wife, Grecia Quiroz, took up the post after his death."}],[{"start":167.06,"text":"Homicide rates have fallen markedly in Michoacán since a surge in 2021, according to Mexican government statistics, but extortion and vehicle theft remain far higher than national levels."}],[{"start":183.7,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1786077165_2736.mp3"}