Avocado Shortage Forces Danville Eatery to Change Menu

DANVILLE, CA — Californians in need of a guacamole fix are not likely to find their favorite fruit on sale at their local grocery store produce section anytime soon. Labor strikes in Mexico have caused the massive avocado shortage, which has quickly taken its toll on small businesses as well.

The popular fruit is a mainstay in many of the Asian and Mexican dishes found across the state. Well-known East Bay restaurateur Rodney Worth of Danville says the cost of avocados has become so cost prohibitive that he had to temporarily rewrite his menus, pulling avocado items off the menu entirely.

Worth owns seven busy Bay Area restaurants, including the The Prickly Pear Cantina, which serves California-inspired Mexican food.

“They are some of the most popular items,” Worth told Patch. “It's hard to do, but $135 a case is insane. We have been in constant contact with our produce suppliers and are trying to figure things out. It still looks like it'll be several weeks.”

Before the labor disputes, Rodney says he could buy a case of avocados for $40.

The California growing season for avocados is over, according to Eric Larson, the executive director of the San Diego County Farm Bureau. Larson said California relies on Mexico for the fruit after the growing season ends, and a labor dispute between the growers and the shippers in Mexico created the artificial shortage in California.

“This is what happens when we depend on other countries for our food,” Larson said.

Larson said they believe the shortage will subside, as the avocados have started shipping to California again as of last week.

Photo courtesy Morguefile