E-Mail
IMAGE: Adding avocado to your meal improves gut health, a new University of Illinois study shows. view more
Credit: College of ACES, University of Illinois.
URBANA, Ill. - Eating avocado as part of your daily diet can help improve gut health, a new study from University of Illinois shows. Avocados are a healthy food that is high in dietary fiber and monounsaturated fat. However, it was not clear how avocados impact the microbes in the gastrointestinal system or gut. We know eating avocados helps you feel full and reduces blood cholesterol concentration, but we did not know how it influences the gut microbes, and the metabolites the microbes produce, says Sharon Thompson, graduate student in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at U of I and lead author on the paper, published in the
USDA ARS
Dec 14, 2020
Today, the Hass Avocado Board (HAB) announced four producers and importers have been seated to HAB’s executive committee.
The 12-member board of directors elected the following members to serve for the 2021 board year.
Newly seated HAB executive committee members include:
Importer Jorge Hernandez from McAllen, Texas as Chairman
Producer Salvador Dominguez from Santa Paula, California as Vice-Chairman
Producer Ben Van Der Kar of Carpinteria, California as Secretary
Importer David Fausset of Port Hueneme, California as Treasurer
“I am honored to continue supporting the work of HAB alongside these respected industry members seated to the executive committee,” said HAB Chairman Jorge Hernandez. “We know HAB’s success truly depends on the leadership of our board members and we look forward to supporting HAB’s vision of making fresh Hass avocados America’s most popular fruit by 2025.”
Health-conscious consumers are eating avocados like never before during the pandemic.
After a brief drop in demand at the start of the COVID-19 crisis, European and U.S. consumption are hitting record highs, according to Xavier Equihua, chief executive officer of the World Avocado Organization, a trade group.
âConsumption is off the charts,â Equihua said in an interview from California. âPeople want to eat healthy. The new luxury post-pandemic is going to be eating healthy, and wellness. Even the fashion industry is saying that.â
Demand for the fruit has accelerated as more consumers eat at home. No longer just a component of guacamole for parties, its use has broadened to salads, burritos and, of course, the hipster cliche of avocado toast. Europeâs consumption will jump 12% this year to a record 1.48 billion pounds, according to import data, while U.S. demand will increase 7%, Equihua said, citing industry projections.