According to a March 4 blog post by Emily Atkin at Climate Change, Chipotle is publicly warning its millionaire investors (not to mention the rest of us normal folks) of the real consequences of global warming. What's the threat? A potential avocado shortage that could force the fast food chain to drop guacamole from its menu:

Chipotle Inc. is warning investors that extreme weather events “associated with global climate change” might eventually affect the availability of some of its ingredients. If availability is limited, prices will rise – and Chipotle isn't sure it's willing to pay.

We're not talking about a few molcajetes full of the green wonder-fruit, either. Chipotle is a massive consumer of avocados, to the tune of nearly one hundred thousand pounds per day, or around 35 million pounds per year.

]

Guacamole.; Credit: Chipotle

Guacamole.; Credit: Chipotle

And while the avocado industry is fine at the moment, scientists are anticipating drier conditions due to climate change, which may have negative effects on California's crop. Scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, for example, predict hotter temps will cause a 40 percent drop in California's avocado production over the next 32 years.

Chipotle's admirable commitment to responsible, sustainable farming means that they will only contract with growers within a 350-mile radius of the restaurant where the ingredients will be used, which puts Los Angeles at ground zero for the impending guacpocalypse.

The upside? This news should certainly help drive home the potential consequences of global warming, for any of the remaining climate change deniers out there.

Malcolm Bedell blogs about cooking and food weirdness at From Away and Spork & Barrel. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Want more Squid Ink? Follow us on Twitter or like us on Facebook.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.