Coffee farming was the economic lifeblood of Riobardo Zapata’s family for generations until the industry seemed to dissolve around him. Extreme weather that scientists attribute to climate change – including extended droughts and heavy rains – began to ravage harvests over the past decade, jeopardising both the fate of the little bean that helped put Colombia on the map and the livelihoods of the farmers who cultivate it. Unstable market prices, meanwhile, left 56-year-old Zapata subsisting during the best of crop seasons and sinking into debt during the worst. “I’d have to be taking money out from banks all the time. I couldn’t afford food or lots of basic necessities,” Zapata told Al Jazeera. But seven years ago, an “avocado boom” swept across the South American country, prompted by skyrocketing global demand and prices for the fruit. The boom transformed regions like Zapata’s, turning the forest-cloaked Andean mountains surrounding his small town into avocado farms that stretch as far as the eye can see. Zapata was among countless Colombians who cashed in, ditching their crops for the lucrative “green gold”. “All my life, my family, my grandparents, my parents, everyone grew coffee,” Zapata said. “But now, coffee is disappearing and avocado is taking its place.” Yet scientists warn that the overcultivation of the fruit poses an environmental threat in one of the most biologically diverse regions of the world, especially as climate conditions grow more extreme.
‘Disorganised growth’
The avocado’s rapid expansion in Colombia began in 2014 when farmers exported 1,408 tonnes of Hass avocado. The industry has since exploded, reaching a record high of 544,933 tonnes in 2020, Colombian government figures show. The green fruit is exported to the United States, Europe and Asia. Today, Colombia is the third-largest avocado exporter in the world and the biggest exporter to Europe. The boom has completely transformed economies in rural swathes of Colombia, explained Joaquin Guillermo Ramirez, a researcher at Colombia’s National University investigating the ripple effects of the trade. “Now, they get a fair wage, health insurance, a pension, and their families get all the social services they need,” Ramirez told Al Jazeera. “That’s been fundamental for the quality of life in avocado-growing regions.” In other regions of the world such as East Africa and Nigeria, farmers have hailed the crop as an antidote to poverty. But what Ramirez described as “totally disorganised growth” has led to a number of concerning knock-on effects as farmers begin to cultivate the fruit in areas outside their ideal climate conditions. “More and more, we’re taking [the avocado] to more extreme areas,” Ramirez said. “And in those zones, they require more resources … it’s going to affect the environment more and you’re going to be affecting other species.” The fruit is already a big consumer of resources. It takes about 283 litres of water to produce one kilogramme of avocados in Chile, according to the Netherlands-based non-profit Water Footprint Network. That’s four times what is needed to produce a kilo of oranges and 10 times what’s required for tomatoes. As the avocado expands further from the natural cold-weather environment in which it typically grows, farmers will have to use greater quantities of water to cultivate it and potentially damaging chemicals to control pests, Ramirez said.
Foreign interests moving in
In Sonson, the conflict between foreign avocado companies and environmental concerns has come to a head, said Christian Camilo Perez, an environmental engineer with the local mayor’s office. On a recent day in late August, Perez climbed up the steep side of a mountain overlooking his small town in plastic mud boots that reached his knees. The path he walked led up to a nature reserve protecting two highly biologically diverse ecosystems: the bosque andino, or cold weather forest, which is key to mitigating climate change; and the paramo, high-altitude wetlands that act as a crucial water source for much of the region. Perez paused on the side of the mountain, squinted and pointed to a patch of avocado trees high on the hillside.