The Chilean Hass Avocado Committee will take a year-long break from its traditional consumer marketing activities in the UK and Europe as the sector recovers from a drought.
Following a growth in both production and exports last season, Chile’s Hass avocado industry is gearing up for a contraction in volume during 2012/13, largely as a result of drought conditions in some growing regions.
“Following the drought, the Chilean Hass Avocado Committee has decided to organise a smaller marketing effort in Europe this season,” Adolfo Ochagavía, president of the Chilean Hass Avocado Committee, told Eurofruit.
“We will be carrying out some public relations activities, plus we’ll participate at Fruit Logistica 2013. We hope to return with a bigger marketing programme in 2013/14.”
This season, Ochagavía anticipates a slightly smaller Chilean avocado crop in comparison to the previous campaign with approximately 8 per cent less fruit.
“Production will be around 185,000 tonnes and we estimate that exports will range between 100,000 tonnes and 105,000 tonnes,” he said.
For the European market, the committee expects sendings will rise by 6 per cent to 34,000 tonnes.
Although the forecast is up against the 32,000 tonnes exported in 2011/12, it remains significantly less than the 52,000 tonnes recorded during the 2010/11 season.
The full report is published in the October issue of Eurofruit.
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