Avocado prices surge to a 24-year high

Avocado prices jumped to the highest in more than two decades amid tightening supplies in Mexico, the world’s biggest exporter of the fruit, signaling pricier guacamole.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)

An index tracking avocado from the Mexican state of Michoacan, by far the biggest source in the country, climbed 81% this year to 760 pesos ($38) per 9-kilogram box, the highest in data going back to 1998, government figures showed.

“Lower availability and supply-side inflationary pressures are the main suspects,” said David Magana, an analyst at Rabobank International.

A PERSPECTIVE FROM THE VINEYARD

Mexican avocado output is seen dropping by 8% in the 2021-22 crop year from a record high the previous season, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department. American importers of the fruit are still catching up from a temporary ban on shipments from Michoacan last month stemming from threats against U.S. inspectors.

Mexico accounts for more than 80% of the avocados consumed in the U.S. In California, which feeds about 15% of American demand, production is forecast to rise this year “but clearly not enough to satisfy growing avocado demand in the U.S.,” Magana said.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)

Companies already are feeling the pinch from higher prices. First Watch Restaurant Group said its costs are rising toward the high end of its projections.

Mission Produce Inc, the largest U.S. avocado distributer, raised prices by 50%. “Partially offsetting price gains was an 18% decrease in avocado volume sold, which was primarily driven by lower supply, but exacerbated by price sensitivity in select international markets that competed for lower cost sources of fruit,” Chief Executive Officer Steve Barnard said in a statement.

U.S. per capita consumption of avocados has more than doubled since 2010 to over nine pounds, according to Rabobank’s research.

The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.

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