5 days ago
New season avocados: Good prices, good quality for NZ, as sector prepares for export
Photo:
123RF
Industry group New Zealand Avocados says the new season (2025/2026) has started with solid harvest forecasts, since picking starting last month and will run into summer.
Chief executive Brad Siebert said New Zealand shoppers will be able to enjoy good quality fruit at good prices.
"Consumers will be seeing some pretty good avocados on the shelf at the moment," he said.
Siebert said harvest started in July to first service the local market, ahead of exports which will get into full swing in the coming months.
This new season, 6.5 million trays of fruit were expected from the 1400 orchards that were part of the industry group, more than half of which would be exported.
Last year's 2024/2025 season was a bumper, with 7.6 million trays reaching $163m.
Siebert said last year was a relief for growers.
Photo:
"As far as last year, that we've concluded now, that was a pretty good relief for many in the industry with substantial gains in export volumes and export value and just an increasing value seen in the local market."
It followed a horror season in 2023 due to adverse weather which impacted export-grade fruit earning just $20m from international markets.
Siebert said last season, exports rose 170 percent on that terrible season prior, to 3.8m trays sent abroad.
However, he said fortunately weather conditions this year have improved.
"The weather has been better. The last two years it had some real impact on growers' returns, as the export volume of fruit has been dramatically down and the pack out rate or the class one available for export has been reduced, but we're seeing diversification creates opportunities to send to a diverse set of countries."
Siebert said avocado exporters had diversified their markets in recent years, beyond key market Australia, which was bearing fruit for them.
Australia was traditionally the largest export market, but he said internal competition there was growing.
Photo:
Wikicommons
"One of the exciting parts of that is the diversification the industry's seen and the export markets, with Asia historically seen around 8 percent of their volumes is now representing 37 percent of our export revenue.
"Historically sometimes up to 85 percent of the export crop went to Australia and the Eastern seaboard where the seasonal competitor there being Western Australia.
"Consumption continues to grow in Australia, thankfully, but so does the production out of Western Australia."
But he said diversification helped spread the risk.
"We, like many nations, have diversified, so we've got the ability in the season ahead to export to more countries than any other origin, and so we're headed to North America, Canada, the US and a whole lot more to Asia as well as servicing the important Australian market as well."
Avocados into the United States will also
face the 15 percent import
tariff, which Siebert said was being discussed by government trade officials.
Siebert said there was good demand for avocados in New Zealand, as Kiwis consumed the fruit at quite a high rate per capita. But he said harnessing retail opportunities and educating consumers would be key to capitalising on that demand.
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