In this installment of the ‘Agronometrics In Charts’ series, we study the surge of Colombian avocados in the U.S. market. Each week the series looks at a different horticultural commodity, focusing on a specific origin or topic visualizing the market factors that are driving change.

The growth trajectory of Colombian avocado exports shows no signs of decelerating in 2024. Ricardo Uribe, CEO of leading grower-exporter Cartama, anticipates a 16 to 20 percent increase in Colombia's avocado exports this year, potentially reaching a shipment volume of 141,000 tonnes.

During the peak of this season, the U.S. market can expect over 50 containers of avocados per week from Colombia, with volumes gradually decreasing as the season progresses. This growth follows consistent year-over-year increases of double and triple digits and the maturation of Colombia’s growing regions.

Today, more than a dozen state-of-the-art packing sheds and over 400 growers are certified to ship Hass avocados to the U.S. market. Colombian avocados are available year-round due to the region’s tropical climate, which supports varied blooms and harvest times across two distinct seasons: the current traviesa season and the main season from September to January.

Manuel Michel, Executive Director of the Colombia Avocado Board (CAB), highlighted that Colombia is at a crossroads of opportunity, generating economic development with the Hass avocado sector spearheading sustainability efforts. This success is attributed to Colombia’s rich agricultural heritage and commitment to biodiversity.

“CAB is excited to be part of the ongoing development and to support the avocado growers, exporters and importers as they invest in Colombia and leverage their logistical advantage to the East Coast,” Michel said.

The 2023 season concluded with record shipment totals exceeding 32 million pounds. For 2024, shipments are projected to increase by over 50 percent, reaching a total volume of 50 million pounds for the entire year.

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.

(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)

In our ‘In Charts’ series, we work to tell some of the stories that are moving the industry. Feel free to take a look at the other articles by clicking here.

All pricing for domestic US produce represents the spot market at Shipping Point (i.e. packing house/climate controlled warehouse, etc.). For imported fruit, the pricing data represents the spot market at Port of Entry.

You can keep track of the markets daily through Agronometrics, a data visualization tool built to help the industry make sense of the huge amounts of data that professionals need to access to make informed decisions. If you found the information and the charts from this article useful, feel free to visit us at www.agronometrics.com where you can easily access these same graphs, or explore the other 21 commodities we currently track.

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