"Peru: "An avocado in every household "

During the first half of this year, avocados were the most outstanding Peruvian agricultural export product. They achieved exports of 250.2 million dollars and became one of the top ten Peruvian agricultural exports. 

"We estimate we'll produce more than 165,000 tons this year, 70% of which will be shipped to Europe, 20% to the United States, 4% to Asia, 4% to Chile, and 2% to other destinations. Even though it is still too early to say how much we will be able to export in the 2017 campaign, we are sure there will be a significant increase," said Arturo Medina Castro, from ProHass.

"In this campaign El Niño caused several climatic changes so we had a fall in volume and gauges were lower because of the increase in sunshine hours. We have about 25,000 hectares of crops, but at the moment only 20,000 are in production. "Peruvian producers are becoming more responsible and we have more and more certified hectares. Additionally, producers are using the appropriate percentage of dry matter to ensure that the fruit matures correctly and so Peru is strongly positioning itself in these markets", stated Medina. 

A clear example of this increase in demand is the curiosity that this fruit has awakened in the Asian market. However, the process to insert this fruit in this market is still under way, as there is a lack of knowledge on how to use it in the cuisine and about its nutritional value. "Our goal is to get the avocado in every household", said Medina.

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