APEAM Formalizes Zero Deforestation Agreement with SEMARNAT

APEAM formalized a Zero Deforestation Agreement with SEMARNAT and PROFEPA, establishing a voluntary compliance model to ensure environmental legality, traceability and transparency in Mexico’s avocado export supply chain. The framework integrates forest monitoring tools and aligns with labor formalization efforts, reinforcing regulatory compliance and ESG standards across the sector. This development strengthens the competitiveness of Mexican avocado exports to the United States, where demand and sustainability requirements continue to rise.

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The Association of Avocado Producers and Export Packing Houses of Mexico (APEAM) formalized a Zero Deforestation Agreement with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) and the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA), with the aim of reinforcing sustainability in avocado production for export.

This agreement establishes a voluntary environmental self-regulation model for export-oriented avocado production, designed to ensure strict compliance with current forest and environmental legislation, while strengthening traceability, legality, and transparency regarding product origin. Within this framework, APEAM acts as a governance infrastructure, responsible for overseeing compliance with the bilateral Operational Work Plan that regulates orchards, packing facilities, inspections, traceability, and logistics for the export of Hass avocados to the United States.

Under this scheme, and in coordination with SEMARNAT and PROFEPA, clear mechanisms will be implemented to identify orchards with potential forest impacts, support legal regularization processes, and, where applicable, apply remediation or compensation measures based on technical criteria defined by the authorities. The signing of this instrument is the result of a technical and institutional process aligned with the Agreement published in Mexico’s Official Gazette on Oct. 24, 2025, which established a mandatory zero-deforestation requirement for agricultural exports.

Within this framework, two key provisions stand out: first, export products must originate from land free of deforestation since 2019, in accordance with the corresponding resolution issued by SEMARNAT. Additionally, agricultural workers must benefit from decent working conditions, in line with the Agro-Export Labor Certificate, which seeks to ensure labor formalization, access to social security, and respect for farmworkers’ rights across the entire value chain.

During the signing ceremony, Alicia Bárcena, Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, publicly recognized APEAM’s track record as a key player in agri-food trade, as well as its role in adopting international standards, best practices, and voluntary sustainability schemes. She clarified that this model does not replace the state’s authority, but rather complements public functions by strengthening territorial oversight, traceability, and environmental risk prevention.

For his part, Raúl Martínez Pulido, President, APEAM, emphasized that export avocado production only has a future if it is compatible with forest protection. “There is no competitiveness without legality, and no sustainable trade without environmental responsibility. This Zero Deforestation Agreement is not a symbolic gesture or a temporary response, it is the natural evolution of a model the sector has built over nearly three decades, based on clear rules and shared responsibility,” he said.

Forest Monitoring and Certification: The Role of Guardian Forestal

Forest protection within the export avocado supply chain gained prominence in 2024, when the government of Michoacan launched the Guardian Forestal (Forest Guardian) program. This monitoring system uses satellite imagery to assess deforestation and maintain an up-to-date map of certified orchards. Avocado farms can voluntarily register on the platform to obtain the Pro Forest Avocado certification, a measure designed to trace the origin of the fruit and ensure it has been cultivated without deforestation.

To date, 2,000 out of the 58,000 registered avocado orchards have been blocked from exporting to the United States due to non-compliance with requirements, according to Heriberto Padilla, Director and Founder, Guardian Forestal. “There was significant pressure for the US market to require that avocados have zero deforestation from January 2018 onward, that they were not established on land-use changes caused by fires since 2012, and that they comply with environmental licensing requirements,” he explained in an interview with Mongabay. 

This initiative has been well received by both the industry and US consumers. Last year, during New York Climate Week, it was recognized by Climate Rights International as the world’s best satellite monitoring system for forest conservation. In addition, major retail chains such as Costco and Walmart, together purchasing 60% of Michoacan avocados exported to the United States, have adopted the Pro Forest Avocado certification as a requirement for their suppliers. Similarly, Target and Kroger have also embraced these conservation and forest protection measures.

US Avocado Market: Rising Demand and Strategic Consumption Trends

These types of sustainability-driven initiatives are essential, particularly as avocado exports to the United States continue to grow. In 2025, avocado imports reached 297.3Mlb during the first three months of the year. Between January and March of this year, that figure rose to 396.9Mlb, representing a 33% year-over-year increase, as reported by Pedro Somarriba, President, Avoworks, a producer, packer, importer, and distributor of Mexican avocados.

The market is driven by key consumption events such as Cinco de Mayo and the Super Bowl, as well as the increasingly important college football season. According to Álvaro Luque, CEO,  Avocados From Mexico, these celebrations are boosting guacamole demand and pushing Mexican avocado imports to a record 2.6Mlb for the 2025–2026 season.

Luque noted that in recent years the organization has shifted away from Super Bowl advertising, achieving better returns by sponsoring the College Football Playoff. He also expects demand for Cinco de Mayo to grow faster than imports tied to the Super Bowl. “From August to December there are 2,000 college football games, and if we can increase consumption during those events in the same way we have for the Super Bowl, we will generate significant volume,” he said in an interview with Bloomberg.

He explained that the start of the college football season coincides with the beginning of Mexico’s fall harvest, making it an ideal opportunity for producers to market their product. This year, US imports of Mexican avocados for Cinco de Mayo are expected to reach at least 230Mlb, 10 million more than the previous record set in 2023, according to group estimates.