"Phenomenal" prices for South African avocados in Europe"

“The 2017 avocado season has been fantastic thus far,” says Athol Currie, chairperson of the South African Avocado Growers’ Association (SAAGA). “We’re getting phenomenal, unheard of prices overseas. In general, avocado crops are down worldwide, leaving a big opening in the European market. The South African crop is also tending to be on the down side because it is an off year in production and the effect of the drought is coming home to roost this season.”

The Fuerte season is winding down, while Hass and Pinkerton volumes start picking up as avocado growers around the country come into the market.

The official weekly shipment forecast, prepared by SAAGA, provides a figure of 543 000 x 4kg cartons shipped this week, peaking at 676 000 to be shipped in week 21.

Avocados from Peru have started arriving on the European market. “In about three to four weeks there will be more volumes on the European market,” says Rouxan Jansen van Rensburg of Corefruit, which markets ZZ2’s avocados. “From week 10 to week 13 the South African industry shipped around 1,000 to 1,600 pallets weekly and from week 14 to 25 it’s the peak avocado export season with an estimated 2,000 to 2,300 pallets weekly.”

Jaco Marais, marketing manager of The Fruit Farm Group, says that the high prices of this year is a continuation of the upward trend of the past seven years, as European consumers become more familiar with the avocado, a process greatly facilitated by the ripe-and-ready avocado product.

In week 15 South Africa shipped 2,373 pallets to Europe, 986 pallets of greenskinned and 1,387 pallets of Hass to Europe. Up until 6 April, 69% of exports went to the Netherlands and 23% to the UK with Russia and the Far East taking 1% each, according to the Perishable Products Export Control Board.

The prices South African avocados attain in Europe are still high and stable, though not as high anymore as the opening prices.

“The trend of high export prices we’re getting is carrying over to the local market,” says Currie of SAAGA. Elfranco Hoogenhout, director of the Farmers Trust, agrees. “We’re getting unusually high prices at the moment, for instance R80 [€5.62] to R100 [€7.03] for a 4kg box of Fuerte or R120 [€8.43] for a 20kg bag of class 3 avocados. The quality is good but supply is definitely down due to the drought and the fact that it’s an off year, production-wise.”

Marinus Gubitz of Subtropico says that the avocado market is on the quiet side, partly because of the harvest transition from Fuerte over to Hass and Pinkerton, partly because demand among cash-strapped South African consumers is down.

Athol Currie is optimistic about the 2018 season. “I think we can expect a massive ‘on’ year next year.”

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Athol Currie