OXNARD, CA - The avocado category is ripe with opportunity—pun intended. Mission Produce continues to wield its impressive ripening capabilities and robust avocado portfolio to satisfy consumer demand. With Mexico transitioning to its Flor Loca crop, the provider is helping retailers balance the size curve by sourcing larger fruit from Peru.

“We are the largest exporter of Hass avocados from Peru and have strong relationships with organic growers in the region to provide a consistent, high-quality supply,” shares Hector Soltero, Vice President of Sales Operations. “We are vertically integrated in the region with 3,365 hectares in production—a strategic advantage to fill in supply gaps, promote year-round availability, and enhance customer convenience with set scheduling and pricing.”

As Hector goes on to explain, the market is presenting fruit of various origins, dry matter levels, and other characteristics, which calls for a Master in the Art of Ripening to get the ripeness right.

“We use advanced, avocado-specific ripening technology and infrastructure to expertly ripen avocados to customer specification. With 11 forward distribution centers in the United States and Canada that feature state-of-the-art ripening rooms, our fruit is ripened in key markets to promote prompt deliveries to our customer base,” Hector adds. “We have trained ripening specialists in every facility, who use a data-driven and science-based approach to promote consistent quality on every order, no matter the season.”

Industry avocado volume in the United States has been strong for the first half of 2023. According to the Hass Avocado Board, total avocado supply from January through June in 2023 compared to the same period in 2022 has been up by 20 percent, driven by a 42 percent increase in volume from Mexico specifically. As of July 12, 2023, industry inventories were up to 54.6 million pounds.

Mission Produce’s quarterly volume for 2023 has been up year over year for Q1 and Q2.

“Because 31 percent of avocado shoppers said they often buy avocados on impulse, having an effective merchandising strategy can inspire more purchases,” Hector continues. “At Mission, we provide several value-added services, including a category management program that supports our customers in driving avocado category sales.”

Hector goes on, explaining the variety of programs that are currently bolstering the avocado sector at retail.

“Our custom ripe programs allow our customers to order avocados at various ripe stages, and through our ‘Ready!’ program, we deliver avocados at dual ripe stages—ripe and almost ripe—a strategy that helps our customers target a wide range of consumers with different ripeness preferences in order to inspire increased purchases. One of our customers using our ‘Ready!’ program realized double-digit sales growth in the first nine months!” he shares.

In addition, the grower’s Size Minded program supports retailers in merchandising two different sizes of bulk avocados.

“Similar to how consumer ripeness preferences vary, consumer size preferences change according to their usage plans,” notes Hector. “Offering size variety can help retailers capture shoppers purchasing avocados for almost any occasion.”

More updates from Mission Produce are sure to come. Stay tuned as ANUK continues to bring you more category updates and deep dives!

Mission Produce