This season saw a bounce back in the Spanish Hass volumes after the serious impact of drought in the Andalucia region in the previous years. "We received arrivals from Spain and Portugal through till mid-April. During the winter, there has been significant rain in Spain and Portugal, helping to top up aquifers and dams," said Mark Everett, Business Unit Director – Avocados at Worldwide Fruit. "The Moroccan Hass volumes increased significantly year or year, and the fruit performed well for us in the January and February window of supply."
South America
"We decided to extend the departures from Chile this season as we were very pleased with the flavour and texture of the fruit post-ripening. We continued with good volumes through April and May, and the late-season fruit ate exceptionally well."
Shipping was a challenge from Chile this season, and in most cases, containers arrived approximately one week later than was originally planned. According to Mark, these delays were commonplace all season.
"We received the first containers from Peru in mid-March, and so far this season, fruit has ripened well. Although the season seemed slow to start, now that the mainstream suppliers are up and running, there are good volumes and a good mix of sizes available. So far, shipping has been running reasonably well with delays being manageable."
South Africa
This South African season, there has been rain which caused some picking delays, complications at port as a result of strong winds/ocean swell, and also some vessel delays. More recently, the sequencing of vessels seems better. "This week, we expect to finish harvesting the Hass variety in Tzaneen, and harvesting has moved to the Kiepersol region, where the fruit size tends to be larger. The quality of fruit received so far this season has been good."
For more information:
Mark Everett
Worldwide Fruit
Tel: +44 1775 717019
[email protected]