The Peruvian avocado season is underway, with an unexpected boost in early volumes from smaller producers. 

The United States imported an average of 158.2 million pounds of fresh Peruvian avocados over the past four years, according to USDA data.

Peru’s Producers and Exporters Association (ProHass) President Juan Carlos Paredes told FreshFruitPortal.com that supplies are higher than they had calculated. 

Around 22,000 small producers from Sierra de los Andes saw earlier harvests, boosting volumes by around 60%, Paredes said.

"Because they’re smaller producers, we have some acreage not registered with us at ProHass. It is difficult to predict how much they will produce until they actually come up with the fruit," he said.

However, above-average temperatures in 2023’s fourth quarter and early 2024 could impact fruit size.

“We are slightly concerned about the hot temperatures making the fruit smaller. We’re talking 20% to 30% smaller than expected,” Paredes said. This doubles ProHass’ initial projections of 16% smaller fruit.

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"It is still a developing event. We are told that it could be 4 to 5 weeks of waiting, especially for the second flowering and the third flowering, to secure larger sizes. That could extend the commercial window of Peru until October," he added.

As for destination markets, Paredes explained that Europe remains the top importer of Peruvian avocados.

“Up until week 14, 65% of our shipments were bound for Europe. Approximately 10% goes to Asia, mostly China and Korea,” the executive said.

The Asian market saw key growth compared to 2023, Paredes added. “The Chinese market grew by 35%, Japan increased its imports by 200%, and Korea grew another 29%.”

The world’s second-largest avocado exporter

Despite a projected decrease in 2024’s production, Peru is currently the second-largest avocado exporter globally, with Mexico remaining on top.

The Peruvian avocado industry has seen sustained growth for 15 years, Paredes said, estimating “about 15 to 20% annually, depending on the year.”

Paredes said that the sector is looking at the milestone with a high sense of responsibility, looking to achieve efficiency and sustainability.

“We’re not growing our acreage but working on the alternate-bearing crops, heavy metal residue, and sustainability. We are beyond growth discussions, but focusing on efficiency and productivity.”

ProHass is also working on promotions to increase domestic and global consumption. 

“We work collaboratively with the Peruvian Avocado Commission to boost consumption in the United States as well,” Paredes said.

The sector is also working on extending its commercial window to avoid oversupply, which can be detrimental to pricing.

“Bigger companies are managing to move their productive window with irrigation and flowering techniques. The idea is to flatten the Peruvian supply curve so we don’t compete against ourselves,” Paredes said.

For 2023, ProHass hoped to secure a 40% increase in U.S. shipments. This was ultimately not achieved. 

Currently, Peru holds 7.4% of the U.S. imported avocado market, trailing Mexico, with 88.2% of the market, in a distant second place.