China crowding Japan out of avocado market

TOKYO - Japanese avocado lovers are feeling the pinch. Prices for the guacamole fruit are hitting record levels due to reduced harvests in Mexico and other major producers. Swelling demand in China and the US is also at play.

The retail price for an avocado in Japan has risen from the 100- to 150-yen (S$1.24-S$1.86) range in March to the 150- to 200-yen range today. And the price is still rising.

Wholesalers say they've never seen avocado prices reach such heights.

Demand for the green smoothie mainstay has surged in Japan the past few years. In 2016, Japan imported 74,000 tons of the fruit, up 2.5 times from a decade earlier.

Demand has risen in other countries, too. In the US, consumption has doubled to more than a million tons in the past 10 years, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture.

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