Much of the food we eat goes through a pretty incredible journey
to get to us.
This is especially true of avocados.
They don't grow just anywhere.
They need tons of sunlight and a ton of rain,
which is why about 3/4 of the world's avocados
come from Mexico.
Mostly from the state of Michoacan.
Americans are eating about three times more avocados
than they did almost 20 years ago.
Higher demand is good for Michoacan,
but when a region booms,
forces often much shadier, aim to get in on the action.
And trust me,
that's part of your food's journey too.
CHAIN REACTION
Avocados are big business in Mexico.
The state of Michoacan exports the majority of them
to the tune of almost 3 billion dollars a year.
I'm someone that really enjoys avocados.
The people here live off the avocado.
Locals call it green gold.
Over the past 20 years, America's obsession with avocado
has driven industry profits and lifted many people here out of poverty.
Last year, the United States imported
a record-breaking 2.1 billion pounds of the fruit
from Mexico.
"The green gold."
This was a very poor and f**ked up region,
but people have improved their economic situation.
And these days, money as green gold comes at a price.
Criminal organizations, ike Cartel de Jalisco en [ ]
have set their sights on the fruit
as a way to diversify their illicit portfolios
by extorting growers and stealing land.
We're heading up to meet up with a group of people
who have organized to defend this land, defend this area,
from cartels and criminal groups.
We're coming up to their checkpoint.
You can see a guy standing out here with an M4 rifle, a sniper up there--
you're going to see people like this all over town
trying to protect this community.
Everyone gather.
Look right now, I'll leave with the officers.
We'll do a crime prevention patrol.
We'll check that our boundaries are good.
Hector "Tata" Saavedra is the commander of a local defense group
that rose up against the KnightsTemplar Cartel
When it tried to take over large swaths of Michoacan avocado orchards in 2013.
At the beginning, we defended ourselves with machetes, sticks, rocks...
We blocked every way to access our town.
No one gets out, no one gets in.
This was our best defense.
Things are a bit different today.
Close the convoy at about 50 meters for each vehicle, please.
Copiado [inaudible]
We're in the heart of the avocado production zone.
Organized crime is all around us.
There have been situations where we've been ambushed.
But it's our job to keep doing this.
Last year, Tata and his men found themselves in a firefight
with members of the Cartel de Jalisco.
The shootout lasted close to an hour.
The cartel's gunmen eventually retreated,
but not before Tata and his men captured one of their wounded.
(speaking Spanish)
When Tata and his team head out on patrol
It's people like for Healy Augustine Serano, local farmer.
Turn Tower guard, who mans the checkpoints but I'm awake connect.
Not often. Do we rabbit?
So romantic on the Wind of Gringo's are eternal.
What kind of attention did the avocado industry bring to this community?
It almost from well below
the government. Regalo para la parte de la production.
We do. He saw the sorrow.
So these avocados ready to cut? There's a star listo, Para cortar.
Ha of land produces roughly 20 tons of avocados,
and at 40 pesos of Papua Farm, like,
for Helios can rake in some 23,000 dollars per Harvest.
There's a lot of people in the US that love these things,
but I don't think they realize what all of Michoacan goes through
to not only Harvest them but to keep you in
the community safe from the cartels and criminal groups.
What's your message to them? To remember when they eat an avocado?
Like what got the Cuesta? Mucho trabajo?
No, mas
trabajo. She know Questa
organization Cuesta de Sangre in algunos De vidas en algunos casos.
North American West robotic.
Consume an avocado.
When's the last time you actually got to enjoy one,
all you want on my animal communicator?
So definitely be the freshest piece of avocado I've ever eaten. Cheers.
It's good.
It's very good. Yeah.
Yeah, what up? Don't know if I should do this whole thing though, I'm allergic.
For you personally. What are you protecting me? And I open another meant to
protect me familiar.
Are you afraid that things will go back to the way they were
when they occur Jaeger status koshwal esperamos, que, no, Pare.