Avocado industry ramps up for its second-biggest day

No other holiday celebrated in the U.S. is bigger for the avocado industry than Cinco de Mayo — besides the Super Bowl, which many Americans consider an unofficial holiday.

Leading up to Cinco de Mayo, shoppers spend 1.9 times more on groceries when avocados are in the basket, according to a Numerator Basket Affinity Report that studied sales from April 7 to May 4, 2022.

“Cinco de Mayo is the second-biggest consumption occasion in the U.S. for avocados and guacamole, and it represents a key opportunity for us to engage with shoppers,” said Stephanie Bazan, senior vice president of commercial strategy and execution at Avocados From Mexico, a nonprofit avocado marketing organization based in Irving, Texas. 

Avocado demand

The U.S. is one of the biggest consumers of avocados in the world, with annual per capita consumption surpassing 9 pounds, representing three times the European consumption, according to a May 20 ProducePay report.

Avocados from Peru aren’t available in the U.S. until June, but avocados from Mexico and from California are ripe and ready for May 5 parties and gatherings.

Partly due to increases in demand and California’s weather issues, Mexican avocado imports dominate the U.S. avocado market, with a historical maximum of 2.4 million tons in 2021, which is about 87.7% of total avocado imports to the U.S., ProducePay said in the report.

Cinco de Mayo is really called Battle of Puebla Day, like how the Fourth of July has almost overtaken the holiday name of Independence Day.

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This May 5 celebration is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico. But in the U.S., Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations. It’s the anniversary of Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza. The victory over the French army was a morale boost for the Mexicans.

The holiday is often celebrated with Mexican handheld foods, such as tacos, burritos and quesadillas, Bazan said.

Retailer resources

“Cinco de Mayo is on a Friday this year, and we’re working with retailers to make it a big success and reinforce Avocados From Mexico as a top food for Cinco celebrations,” Bazan said.

The association has promotion tools for retailers with a “Cinco de Weekend” shopper marketing campaign. In partnership with Coca-Cola (with a focus on Coke Zero), the organization is creating a three-day weekend fiesta, where shoppers can enter to win 12 weekend getaway trips in a year, with a total value of up to $30,000.

The campaign will feature eye-catching displays, other POS materials and consumer savings to drive consumption. Retailers can use Avocado From Mexico’s merchandising materials to create a fiesta-themed Cinco event for their shoppers.

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Cinco de Mayo — as well as Memorial Day, summer snacking and July 4 — are peak promotion times that offer great deals to retailers so they can pass along great pricing to the consumer, said Jay Alley, co-owner and vice president of sales at Rhome, Texas-based Fresh Innovations and its Yo Quiero brands.

The company’s marketing team plans to run social media campaigns and contests to increase brand engagement and drive trial, said Tara Murray, Fresh Innovation’s vice president of marketing.

“Social media plays a huge role in our marketing plans,” she said. “We communicate to our consumers through Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter. We hype up our promotional campaigns and encourage fans to engage with the brand.”

Avocado deals

The peak promotional times are also peak snacking and eating times, Alley said.

“Our dips are fun and meant to be shared,” he said. “Consumers are looking for new and better deals on the snacks and foods they love. Ultimately, we gauge success by how well retailers have sold through the line. It’s not a successful promotion until it gets through the cash register.”

In March, Fresh Innovations introduced a new bean dip to its Ultimate Dip Destination line of Yo Quiero products. With this introduction, the company has worked with retailers on bundling strategies to keep the cost low for shoppers.

“This bundling allows for price points, like three for $10, where customers are encouraged to try more than one item, and retailers get a nice ring,” Alley said.

Good volume

Hass avocado volume is up almost 20% compared to the same time in 2022, according to the Hass Avocado Board. A year-to-date volume comparison showed 655.1 million pounds of avocados were available in the U.S. by the first 13 weeks of 2022, compared to 75.9 million pounds within the same time this year.

“We’ve seen a strong and steady supply of high-quality avocados, so we’re anticipating this year’s Cinco celebrations to be very successful in terms of meeting the demands of avocado shoppers,” Bazan said.