W44: Weekly Avocado Update
Mexico
Avocado Exports From Michoacán Increased by 25.3%
Avocado exports from the Mexican state of Michoacán have increased by 25.3% to 2.3 million tons a year, worth $7.6 billion, said Cuauhtémoc Ramírez Romero, agriculture minister of the state of Michoacán. According to the minister, the economic importance of this cultivation in Michoacán is very high, as the sector generates at least 310,000 direct jobs. The minister reported that the National Service for Food Safety and Quality (Senasica) has certified 49,005 avocado orchards, representing an area of 152,712 hectares. This will allow the export of this fruit to the United States to increase again in the next season, which starts in October and ends in April. A total of 72 packing stations are certified to meet the requirements laid down in Law NOM-066-FITO-1995 and in the Work Plan for the Export of Hass Avocados from Mexico to the United States. The state of Michoacán produces 82.1% of Mexican avocados. The main growing areas are the municipalities of Uruapan, Tancitaro, and Salvador Escalante. After Michoacán, Jalisco follows with 7.3% and the state of Mexico with 4.1%.
Peru
The Hectares of Avocados Are Reduced in Peru
According to the Peruvian Association of Hass Avocado Producers (ProHass), almost 10,000 young hectares of avocados/Hass avocados will enter production in the 2022-23 season, adding to the more mature growing areas. However, the country will do almost no additional planting for the crop. The fact occurs after the changes in the agrarian promotion law and the elimination of fiscal incentives, according to the Peruvian newspaper Gestión. Peru exported 613,947 tons of avocados for 976 million dollars between January and September 2022, a period in which the country makes 99% of its shipments. The export volume increased by 11% but its value decreased by 10% since the average price reached in this campaign stood at 1.59 dollars per kilogram, one of the lowest in recent years. The Peruvian nuevo sol has weakened considerably against the US dollar and producers are likely to be hit harder by the price crash now compared to two or three years ago when the currency was on solid footing.
According to forecasts, by the end of 2022, there will be about 43,000 hectares dedicated to this crop. The regions that have stood out the most in production are La Libertad, Lambayeque, and Lima with 34, 20, and 15 percent participation, respectively. According to Juan Carlos Paredes, president of ProHass, orders for avocado plants for nurseries have been minimal this year. “There are only 1 or 2 big avocado projects this year. There are no others. Previously, between 4,000 and 5,000 hectares of avocado were planted per year for production. This has made many Peruvian and international producers choose to invest in other countries such as Colombia and Ecuador."
The Value of Avocado Exports Shrinks 9.5% Between January and August 2022
The Peruvian Foreign Trade Society (ComexPerú) reported that, between January and August 2022, avocado exports reached a value of USD 847 million, which reflected a drop of 9.5% compared to the same period in 2021 ( $936 million). Despite the above, and based on figures from the National Superintendency of Customs and Tax Administration (Sunat), the value recorded during 2022 was higher than those achieved in 2020 and 2019, when shipments were made for USD 721 million and USD 737 million, respectively.
Colombia
Low-Quality Avocados Reported in Colombia in W44
In October, the warm areas of the coffee region in Colombia faced heavy rains. As a result of the rains, avocado production is presenting quality problems such as lenticelosis, well above international standards for Category 1 avocados. In addition to low quality, there is still a predominance of avocados of a small caliber of 28-32.
Tanzania
Tanzania Becomes the 2nd African Country to Export Avocados to China
Tanzania's president has signed the Protocol on Phytosanitary Exports with China, enabling the export of fresh avocados and making it the second African nation after Kenya to export avocados to China. This will help Tanzania's avocados to fetch good prices while reducing overdependence on the EU and Gulf markets, which are already saturated with supply from the major producing countries, including Kenya. Tanzania produces an average of 40,000MT of exportable avocados annually, of which only 10,000MT are exported since 2019. Tanzania is the third-largest producer in Africa after South Africa and Kenya and the 19th-largest producing country in the world. Tanzania's avocado industry is the fastest-growing subsector in the horticultural industry, with production projected to double in the next 3 years due to readily available land. Thus, there will be increasing volumes of avocados available for export to China in the coming years.
The 2022/23 Low Season for Tanzanian Avocados Is Expected to Be Short With Low Supply
The Tanzanian 2022/23 avocado low season in the Songwe region is expected to be short with low volume due to the drought that occurred between July to September 2022. The low-season avocado normally runs from December to January.
Turkey
It has been reported that the second phase of the distribution of avocado saplings within the framework of agricultural projects carried out by Mersin Metropolitan Municipality has been completed. With the 'Avocado Sapling Distribution Project', the Metropolitan Municipality supported the cultivation of avocado, a tropical plant that grows in accordance with the Mediterranean climate, as an alternative agricultural product in order to both increase the production in the country and bring high income to the producers. In this framework, seedlings with a 50 percent grant were distributed to the producers in the second stage.
