We have already opened no fewer than 73 markets for our Hass avocados
What started in 1999 as a collaboration between 13 Hass avocado producers in the central coastal area of Peru, with a total area of just 200 hectares, is nowadays an association with 71 associated producers and exporters. In 2023, Peru shipped 558,000 tons of Hass avocados to international markets and ranked as the second-largest Hass avocado exporter in the world.
“In 1998, a group of avocado producers made a study trip to the neighboring country of Chile to learn about various aspects of cultivation and marketing, and once back in Peru, they decided to create ProHass, following the example of other producer associations,” says Arturo Medina Castro, general manager of the association. “Of the 71 associates, the majority combine cultivation and exporting; only 6 of them are entirely devoted to exporting, buying the fruit from small and medium-sized producers, which are very numerous. In fact, of the 27,000 avocado producers in Peru, about 20,000 own a plot of less than one hectare, especially in the Andes.”
Main objective in the first years: the opening of new markets
Around 60% of Peru’s avocados are shipped to Europe, 20% to the United States, 10% to Chile and the rest to Asian countries, according to Karina Tokashiki, head of the Technical Department. “Although our first shipments to international markets went to Europe and the United States, we have already opened no fewer than 73 markets,” says Arturo Medina Castro. “We are not yet present in Taiwan, Mexico, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand, but we are working on it.”
Full article in FreshPlaza
FreshPlaza Special on Peru (May 2024)
