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Study Finds Nicaraguan Avocado Landraces Came From South American Coast 4,000–5,000 Years Ago

Researchers argue the genetic diversity preserved in those local trees could supply disease- and climate-resistant traits for the globally dominant Hass industry if conservation and breeding follow.

Fruit grows on a native avocado tree in southern Mexico
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Overview

  • The study published Wednesday found DNA links between lowland Nicaraguan avocado landraces and coastal South American varieties, which the authors say points to human movement of those avocados north about 4,000 to 5,000 years ago.
  • Researchers collected leaf samples from 47 native landraces, including 32 from Nicaragua, and compared them with genetic data from more than 200 other avocado lineages to reach their conclusions.
  • Field interviews with growers in Nicaragua, Honduras, and southern Mexico accompanied the DNA work and documented that local farmers have long cultivated diverse landraces and sometimes graft commercial branches onto native trees.
  • Farmers reported that many lowland landraces have not shown root rot, and researchers note this local resilience could provide rootstock or genetic traits to reduce the disease risk facing the clonally propagated Hass variety.
  • Because roughly 80 percent of global avocado output is the single cloned Hass cultivar, the paper urges focused conservation and breeding programs to use Central American landraces to lessen disease and climate vulnerability in commercial supply chains.