A certification program designed to keep deforestation out of avocado supply chains now covers more than 90 percent of Mexican avocado exports to the U.S., according to Climate Rights International, which announced the milestone on International Avocado Day, celebrated July 31 each year.
Established in 2024 by Mexican environmental organization Guardián Forestal with the government of the Mexican state of Michoacán, the Pro-Forest Agriculture program uses satellite imagery, artificial intelligence and geospatial analysis to verify that avocados destined for U.S. grocery chains haven’t contributed to deforestation. Some 80 packinghouses, guacamole processors and avocado oil producers in Mexico currently participate in the voluntary system.
Companies obtain and maintain PFA certification by using the Guardián Forestal monitoring system to exclude from their supply chains orchards that have been deforested since 2018 or that have unresolved environmental fines or administrative orders.
“The Mexican avocado industry was until recently associated with rampant deforestation,” said Daniel Wilkinson, senior policy advisor at Climate Rights International. “Now, avocado buyers have a practical tool to screen orchards and make sourcing decisions based on rigorous, science-based monitoring, and they’re using it. The result has been one of the most rapid transformations of an agricultural supply chain we’ve seen in recent years.”
Retailers driving adoption
Retailers have been a major driver of the program’s rapid growth, according to the organization. In 2025, Costco committed to reducing deforestation in its avocado supply chain and encouraging suppliers to participate in the PFA program. In May 2026, Phoenix-based Sprouts Farmers Market announced that all avocados it sources from Mexico must come from PFA-certified suppliers.
“Retailers have shown they can play a powerful role in protecting forests simply by changing how they buy avocados,” said Heriberto Padilla, director of Guardián Forestal. “As more retailers adopt certified sourcing, the market for avocados linked to recent deforestation will continue to shrink.”
Mexican producers, concentrated in Michoacán, supply more than 80 percent of the avocados consumed in the U.S. annually. Four leading U.S. sellers, Calavo Growers, Fresh Del Monte Produce, Mission Produce and West Pak Avocado, now participate in the PFA program, as do most other companies exporting Mexican avocados to the U.S. A 2024 Climate Rights International report had found those companies supplied from orchards on recently deforested land despite corporate sustainability commitments.
Originally established in Michoacán, the program has expanded to cover all six Mexican states with significant avocado production. The Guardián Forestal monitoring system now covers more than 53,000 orchards spanning more than 200,000 hectares.
Certification not yet universal
Producers linked to recent deforestation can still sell into the U.S. market through companies that have not adopted PFA-certified sourcing. In June, more than 50 environmental and food organizations urged additional U.S. supermarkets to source avocados only from PFA-certified packinghouses.
“What Guardián Forestal and the participating companies have accomplished in less than two years is remarkable,” Wilkinson said. “But the work isn’t finished. Until all major retailers require PFA-certified sourcing, producers linked to recent deforestation will continue to have access to part of the U.S. market.”
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