Cotija Avocados sees room to grow
Cotija Avocados is diversifying its offering into organics and value-added services, says Bryan Prihoda, president and chief financial officer of the hass avocado supplier.
Prihoda says the marketer has growing operations in Cotija, Michoacán, and a U.S. office in Houston.
“In Mexico, we are growers first,” Prihoda said. “Our U.S.-based company exclusively markets fresh Mexican hass avocados, either grown or sourced by our Mexican operations. Without our boots on the ground in Mexico, we would not be in business.”
For the 2023-24 season, Prihoda said overall Mexican acreage of hass avocados has grown tremendously over the past decade, and supply is expected to continue to grow “at pace.” However, the rainy season in Michoacán was delayed this year, which will lead to a size curve with a higher volume of smaller fruit when compared to past years.
“In terms of quality, Mexican hass is the most consistent and best quality in the avocado space,” he said. “The quality in the field this season has been better than years prior, based on the observation of a lower percentage of Class 2 fruit sold versus other years.”
The company is expected to expand its bagged avocado business, he said.
“We do not do much in bagged fruit, but as we expand that value-added service, we will look into options for more sustainable packaging,” he said.
The company also aims to increase its organic avocado sales.
“We are certified to export organic avocados and are developing the network of clientele who deal in organics,” he said.
Sustainability has been part of the company’s calculus for box suppliers, and he said the company is always looking for ways to improve its footprint.
Looking ahead, Prihoda said there are plenty of channels where avocado demand can increase, considering avocado super-shoppers account for perhaps two-thirds of all avocado sales but just 25% of U.S. households.
U.S. consumption is about half of Mexico, and consumption in Europe and Asia is much less than that.
“That's a lot of global population capable of [taking] up any potential slack,” he said.
Demographics and a general upward trend in global wealth support continued demand growth, Prihoda said, along with social media popularity and the health halo of avocados.
