2021 Mexican avocado business updates
AFM Knowledge Hub shares research
Avocados From Mexico has launched what it says is “the most comprehensive archive of avocado insights on the internet.”
The AFM Knowledge Hub – at afmmarketinsights.com — is the result of more than six years of research designed to understand avocado consumer behavior, attitudes and usages, path-to-purchase barriers, barriers for restaurant operators, in-store barriers and more, said Alvaro Luque, AFM president and CEO.
“It is representative of how years of research and analytics has omnichannel purpose that drives not just our own marketing efforts, but also that of our partners across different industries,” he said.
Findings are organized into nearly 50 infographics that show how and why consumers are purchasing, ordering and eating avocados.
The infographics offer retail, foodservice and media partners access to wide-ranging insights “so they can leverage them to optimize their business strategy and meet new goals,” Luque said.
Retailer infographics include findings on purchase drivers, e-commerce, bag and bulk trends, shopper education strategies and relevant seasonal occasions.
By connecting primary research findings with syndicated data and shifting industry trends, Avocados From Mexico has found ways to transform barriers into solutions during pre-shop, in-store and post-shop phases, he said.
Calavo boosts cooling capacity
Calavo Growers Inc., Santa Paula, Calif., has expanded its cooling capacity in Mexico and its relationship with a co-packer there, said Rob Wedin, executive vice president of fresh sales.
“We’re increasing our capacity by about 20% in Mexico,” he said.
The company’s organic volume out of Mexico also should improve this year.
It seemed like supplies were always running short during the past two or three seasons, but he said he expects that to change this year.
“We’ve been able to get the supplies we want to match up with our demand,” he said.
Organic trends upward at Del Rey
Volume of organic avocados out of Mexico is continuing its upward trend, said Donny Lucy, vice president of procurement and East Coast sales for Del Rey Avocado Co. Inc., Fallbrook, Calif.
“There should be plenty of organic Mexican avocados, and movement should be good,” he said.
“(Organic) has become a staple in a lot of people’s shopping carts,” he added.
Pricing should be favorable for organic avocados for at least the next three or four months, Lucy said.
Anytime the price difference is within $5-10 of conventional prices, organic sales tend to be strong, he said.
Eco-Farm volume up 10%
Thanks to the addition of several growers and grower groups in Mexico as well as continued input from existing growers and an expanded customer base, Eco-Farm Corp., Temecula, Calif., the avocado division of The Oppenheimer Group, Vancouver, British Columbia, will have about 10% more volume of Mexican avocados this season, said Gahl Crane, sales director.
Volume will be up on the company’s organic and conventional avocados from Mexico.
There are abundant supplies of size 60 and 70 avocados this fall with increased shipments of extra-large fruit expected by January or February, he said.
Henry Avocado expects 7% increase
Escondido, Calif.-based Henry Avocado Corp. expects to see about a 7% increase in volume of Mexican avocados this year, said president Phil Henry.
“Every year (Mexican growers) have more certified groves for the U.S.,” he said.
The company also will pack more bags this year than in the past.
“When COVID-19 hit, bagging accelerated,” Henry said.
Quality of avocados from Mexico this fall and winter should be “excellent and pretty consistent,” Henry said
McDaniel volume may be up a bit
Volume of avocados from Mexico for Fallbrook, Calif.-based McDaniel Fruit Co. should be similar to or possibly slightly higher than last year, said Rankin McDaniel, owner and president.
Sizing issues have been a challenge this fall, with heavy volume of size 60 and 70 fruit crossing the border and not as many larger avocados as importers would like, he said.
“That’s creating a little stress on the 48s and larger in terms of fulfilling all the necessary commitments and keeping the pricing firm.”
“Quality has been very good,” McDaniel said.
Mission opens DC in Laredo, Texas
Oxnard, Calif.-based Mission Produce Inc. opened a forward distribution center and third-party logistics facility in Laredo, Texas, on Sept. 29, according to a news release.
The center is “strategically positioned to foster enhanced customer service, increased flexibility and expanded capabilities for the company’s customer base,” the release said.
The DC can provide packing, bagging, ripening, trucking, cold storage, cross docking, inspections and drayage – short-distance transportation from the port to Mission’s facility.
The facility features several temperature zones along with:
- 10 ripening rooms with the capacity for 42 pallets each;
- 81,000 square feet of storage space with the potential of 6,000 pallet positions of cold storage;
- 36 refrigerated dock positions and four dry dock positions;
- 900 staging and inspection positions; and
- Four coolers with 2,590 pallet positions.
“Opening a 12th distribution center in Laredo improves our access throughout North America, meaning we can serve our customers with ripe, high-quality fruit more reliably and efficiently than ever before,” Stephen Fink, Mission’s vice president of North American sales, said in the release.
“We expect the industry to benefit from an additional advanced mega distribution center in Laredo, one of the nation’s most significant ports of entry for imported goods,” added Ben Barnard, vice president of global partnerships and business development.
Volume up at West Pak
Volume of Mexican avocados will be up this year for Murrieta, Calif.-based West Pak Avocado Inc., said Doug Meyer, senior vice president of sales and marketing.
Movement is “on pace with continued year-over-year growth,” he said.
Prices likely will be higher during the coming year “primarily due to increased demand projections versus steady to lower supply projections,” he said.
Suppliers are facing higher costs because of labor shortages, higher trucking rates and increased costs of packaging materials, Meyer said.
