The industry is capable of sustaining weekly shipments of over 200 containers during longer periods of the year, and a very good harvest season is projected.

Colombia is experiencing growth in both its avocado production and export capacity. As the main season draws to a close, the outlook is positive, primarily because the industry is healthy, with major companies seeing an increase in the number of containers shipped. This increase is expected to exceed 30%, with year-round supply capacity, but with distinct peak periods: for the main company, between November and January; and for the secondary company, between May and July.

“In 2024 , the main harvest came earlier and there is increasingly more production in Colombia, making it almost impossible to separate the two campaigns (off-season and main),” explains Ricardo Mejía, general manager of Fruty Green and a great connoisseur of the conditions of the industry in his country.

He tells Avobook that it has been a year in which he has had great help from "the sun king" - as he calls it - because it is the essential factor that influences the crops.

“In January of 2024, we had a very good summer, very good sunshine, the flowering was very strong, the fruit set was very strong and that is what we are harvesting now,” he describes, noting that there has been a very good production.

He explains that the same situation will occur with the cross-season fruit: "It will also be strong because in May, June, July, we also had interesting conditions in 2024 and that is the fruit that we are going to harvest in a matter of two or three months, also with good volumes."

Industry growing by 30%

According to Ricardo Mejía, the growth has been very strong, representing a pivotal stage in the evolution of the industry: "Colombia has definitely gone from being an adolescent in the avocado industry to being an adult, because the volumes are significant."

“We are able to sustain more than 200 containers per week for six, seven, or even ten weeks. Before, we would reach 100, then go up to 200, but the following week we would drop. But for several weeks now, starting from week 45, we have averaged between 180 and 220 containers, with even higher peaks. So, the growth has definitely been exponential in every sense, both for individual companies and for the industry,” Mejía comments.

In fact, the manager of Fruty Green describes the season that is about to end as a period of "interesting surprises in terms of volume".

“For reference, the calendar year 2024 (January-December) closed almost 30% higher than 2023, with about 1,600 more containers exported . It was a very significant growth,” he notes.

Challenges: Harvesters and decline in Europe

But it hasn't all been easy. One of the major challenges arose with the harvesters, as the fruit harvest coincided with an excellent coffee harvest, which employs almost the same contracting companies that provide workers for the tasks.

“The logistics of the avocado harvest are closely linked to those of coffee, because many coffee growers also harvest avocados. And when there is so much coffee, our harvest is delayed a bit, making it very long. Farms and producers have easily been harvesting for two or three months straight, because the dry matter keeps growing,” says Ricardo Mejía.

Another challenge has arisen in the commercial sphere, as fruit has had to be redirected from Europe to the United States because commercial conditions suddenly ceased to be favorable.

“Europe saw a significant drop in November and December due to the diverse origins of the fruit. Essentially, what the importers tell us is that the main trigger for this decline was a very large volume of fruit leaving Morocco, which produces very high-quality fruit and is located very close to us in the Mediterranean. Obviously, with Morocco, Chile, Israel, and Spain all vying for our attention, Colombia is no longer among the top choices in Europe. Therefore, we have to explore other options, which is why the United States has become a crucial market for us this season,” the executive explains.

That changed the decisions in the offices: although Colombia's strongest campaign to the United States is the "traviesa" (a type of fruit), from approximately week 50 onwards, between 60 and 70% of the fruit began to be directed to the United States.

“Europe is now experiencing a slight recovery, but towards the end of the season we have high dry matter content, making shipments to that continent not very viable. Therefore, we continue to focus on the United States, which has a much shorter transit time and allows us to work with slightly higher dry matter content,” Mejía explains.

The positive experiences in the industry have also been important for Fruty Green, which has overcome these challenges without halting its shipment growth.

“In the specific case of Fruty Green, this campaign is practically double what we did last year, when we shipped 230 containers. By the end of this campaign, we're already at 430. And we're in line with the industry. We were focused on Europe at least until week 46-47, when we saw that the market had dropped so much that we started shifting our focus much more to the United States,” he explains.

Sustainable growth by 2025

According to Fruty Green's general manager, speaking to Avobook, much more fruit was harvested in November and December during this main campaign than was harvested in 2023.

“The peak was really concentrated in January and February, so that shifts the numbers a bit when we look at them on a calendar year basis. But I think the growth will continue. I don't know if it will reach levels of 25-30% again, but at least between 15 and 20% in 2025, considering that a strong off-season is coming and that we are also in a few weeks of very good summer. So, the flowering on the farms is good, and this flower that we are harvesting right now will be the main crop that will start in September 2025,” he explains.

Furthermore, there's a relevant factor: the beginning of the maturing production stages: “There are very large projects that are starting their peak production phases, reaching years 4, 5, and 6, and that's very positive. And the most positive thing happening in the industry is that many of the crops over 8, 9, or 10 years old that were struggling, trying to recover, have recovered very well and are producing more and more fruit. So I think 2025 continues to be a very promising year for the industry.”