Mission Produce’s Hector Soltero Discusses Avocado Market Opportunities
From
| 1 June 2023
Overview of avocados from in the U.S. market, complemented by charts from Agronometrics. Original published on May 31, 2023.
OXNARD, CA – Retailers, ready those avocado promotions! Good quality and current market pricing are combining to create a prime opportunity for retailers to seize a summer category boost. Mission Produce has all the details.
“The current market pricing provides ideal opportunities to promote avocados through the summer and during upcoming eating holidays such as the Fourth of July and Father’s Day,” explains Hector Soltero, Vice President of Sales Operations, when I ask about the opportunities in store for the avocado category.
As Mission Produce reports, promotable volumes are available in the market with good quality from multiple sourcing regions including California, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru; size availability varies by growing region. As Hector shares, supply is up from each country of origin, and conversely, case prices are down compared to last year.
Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)
Hector also shined a light on a few merchandising tips for retailers.
“Position avocados in the front of the produce department to draw shopper attention and inspire impulse purchases, and accent your displays with tomatoes, limes, and guacamole seasoning, or fresh smoothie ingredients,” Hector advises. “Featuring ripe avocados in a separate display can also promote a boost in sales. Retailers should incorporate ripe and ready-to-eat point-of-sale materials that can speed sales rates and inspire impulse purchases.”
This is one supplier with extensive expertise in the avocado category, as the company is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.
“Throughout our history, we’ve been able to remain competitive because we are driven by innovation, which has enabled us to supply consistent, quality fruit year-round to our trade partners,” added Hector.
Some of the innovations that distinguish Mission Produce as a premium avocado supplier include:
– Mission Produce has built a superior sourcing program and strong grower relationships around the world, enabling it to serve customers in over 25 countries with a reliable supply of high-quality fruit
– Being vertically integrated strengthens the company’s reliability to consistently supply avocados to customers year-round
– With advanced, avocado-specific ripening technology, the grower’s fruit is expertly ripened to customer specification
– The producer invests in category insight data—Avocado Intel—to analyze category performance, inform optimal product selections, and identify promotional opportunities
Mission Produce offers a diverse lineup of conventional and organic products, including small, large, and jumbo bags, as well as bulk avocados of various sizes.
The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.
Access the original article with this (Link)
