According to figures from the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), Colombia has been named as the leading supplier of avocados to Europe, taking first place ahead of countries such as Israel, Spain, Chile and Mexico during the first weeks of the year.
Hass avocados grown in Colombia continue to make giant strides around the world.
Jorge Enrique Restrepo, director of Corpohass, explained that “the leading player in Hass avocado supply to Europe is Colombia, with 30% of the market share.
"Total supply has decreased, which has led to an increase in prices due to several factors. Mexico reduced shipments of Hass to Europe to focus on the United States market this season, prior to the Super Bowl, and the volume exported by Chile has been 75% lower than it was in 2020. Additionally, Israel and Spain have supplied the market to a lesser extent.”
Flavia Santoro, president of ProColombia, described this as momentous news and declared that “avocado continues to position itself as one of the main milestones of the agro-export offering, thanks to the flavour, quality, and sustainability, which are sown every day by domestic producers and supported by foreign investors.
"We will continue to support exporters so that this Colombian-grown fruit can secure first place in more countries, taking advantage of markets such as the United States and Asia, where there are opportunities to grow exports into the double digits.”
Elsewhere, Mauricio Moranth, general manager and partner of Montana Fruits, added that "in addition to being the leading supplier in the first quarter of the year, we will also be number one from August to October, which is an important trade window for Colombian exporters in Europe.”
Colombia can take advantage of these two trade windows to be the main supplier in Europe from January to March and from August to September. In the year to date, this ranking has been held by countries such as Peru, Mexico, Chile, Israel, and Spain.
Meanwhile, in recent years, Colombia has gained ground amongst the top ten avocado suppliers in Europe.
Additionally, it is worth remembering that between January and November 2020, avocado exports from Colombia grew by 50%, reaching $124 million, of which Europe is responsible for approximately 80% of purchases.
The Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and France, together with the United States, are the largest importers of Colombian-grown avocados. Antioquia, Risaralda, and Caldas are the departments with the highest exports.
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