The Colombian hass avocado industry recently formed the Colombia Avocado Board to promote the fruit.
With Colombian avocados reaching U.S. consumers this fall, growers are paying assessments for promotions.
The Medellin, Colombia-based Corpohass trade group represents Colombia’s Hass growers and exporters, according to a news release. The Colombia Avocado Board is based in Orlando, Fla.
“As Colombian hass avocados are new to the U.S., the Colombia Avocado Board will play an important role in bringing growers, exporters and importers together in a cohesive marketing effort which will benefit everyone throughout the distribution channel from growers all the way through to retailers, foodservice professionals and consumers,” William Watson, managing director, said in the release.
Watson is known for his work leading the National Watermelon Promotion Board from 1990-2002 and National Mango Board from 2006-2014 in the U.S.
Colombia’s hass avocados have two harvests, from October to March, which is the main season, and a secondary season from May through August.
Jim Donovan, senior vice president of global information and industry affairs at Mission Produce, said establishing an organization to oversee marketing is the right move.
“Hass avocado growers and exporters in Colombia are smart to create the CAB to help the U.S. trade and consumers better understand their crop and its role in the marketplace,” he said in the release. “As volume of hass avocados from Colombia will increase the diversity of crop options for retailers and foodservice operators in the U.S., the CAB will grow to be meet the needs of avocado marketers as they educate consumers of the benefits of Hass avocados.”
Europe and the U.S. are the biggest buyers of Colombian avocados, and exports to here grew just over 300% in volume from 2018-19, according to the release. Production in Colombia was from 10,800 acres in 2014, and that’s shot up to 41,200 acres this year.
Establishing the Colombia Avocado Board provides new opportunities to promote the avocados in the U.S., Flavio Santoro, president of Procolombia, said in the release.
“This initiative will also reassure our commitment to increase sustainable production so that the exportable offer becomes even more competitive as it reaches wider and more demanding markets,” he said in the release.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the formation of the group in January.
