MEXICO CITY (NEWsnet/AP) — U.S. government inspection of avocados and mangoes in the Mexican state of Michoacan will resume gradually, U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar announced Friday.
The program had been suspended after an assault on inspectors.
U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors will begin to return to the packing plants, Salazar said.
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“More work still needs to be done so that the (agriculture) inspectors are safe and can resume inspections and thereby eliminate the impediments to the trade of avocado and mango to the United States from Michoacan," he said.
Last weekend, two USDA employees were assaulted and held temporarily by assailants in Michoacan, leading to suspension of inspections. The employees work for USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Because the United States also grows avocados, inspectors work in Mexico to ensure exported avocados don’t carry disease that could harm U.S. crops.
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