Omar Diaz Marchena, the general manager of Westfalia Fruit Peru, a subsidiary of the multinational Westfalia Fruit Group, said the company planned to increase its fresh avocado exports by 30% this year, reaching 41,000 tons (2,000 containers). So far this year, the company has already dispatched 35% of its offer.
According to Diaz Marchena, the company will achieve this growth because the plantations are young, which means they are increasing their productive yields year after year, and because the company is including new producers within its portfolio of avocado suppliers in the different regions.
The entity works with small, medium, and large producers located in 14 regions of the country (Lambayeque, La Libertad, Ancash, Lima, Ica, Arequipa, Cusco, Ayacucho, Huancavelica, and Cajamarca, among others), totaling around 3,000 hectares. In addition, they rent a 70-hectare field in Chilca (Lima). The company does not have its own areas.
This diversification in the regions of origin allows Westfalia Fruit Peru to supply fresh avocado almost all year round; however, the bulk of exports are concentrated from February to September, he stated.
Destination Markets
The company plans to direct 50% of its fresh avocado to Europe and the rest to Asia, the United States, and a small percentage to Latin America. He also said that 95% of the total to be exported corresponded to the Hass variety and the remaining 5% to green-skinned avocados.
“There is an increase in consumption in Europe and the United States as they eliminate some restrictions that prevented the mobilization of people. The Horeca channel, which was closed at the beginning of the pandemic, is starting to open. This will increase the demand for avocado," he said.
Frozen avocado
The general manager of Westfalia Fruit Peru also said they were venturing into frozen avocado. Last year the company carried out a pilot plan for exports of frozen fruit and this year they are already carrying out a commercial program. They estimate they'll continue to increase their exports in the IQF segment because the multinational Westfalia Fruit Group has sales channels at a global level and can provide support to supply these channels with this product.
This year the company expects to export around 900 tons of frozen avocado to Europe and the United States.
Source: agraria.pe