Exports have surged from just 479 tonnes in 1999 to a projected 692,000 tonnes in 2025
Peruvian avocado exports will reach 1mn tonnes within the next few years, according to José Antonio Castro, president of industry association ProHass.
Peru is the second biggest avocado exporter in the world behind Mexico, which shipped approximately 1.2mn tonnes of the fruit in 2024.
Speaking to Agraria, Castro noted that in 1999, the year ProHass was founded, there were around 2,000ha of Hass avocados planted in Peru. Exports in that year totalled 479 tonnes. Today, there are 84,000ha of production, with exports on course to reach 692,000 tonnes this year.
More than 30,000 producers in depend on this crop for their livelihood and there are 69 packing plants nationwide dedicated to the processing and export of Hass avocados.
Peruvian avocados are shipped to 70 markets worldwide, the main destinations being Europe, North America and Chile. Negotiations are currently underway to secure access to Mexico, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Australia.
“We have shown that practically all markets in the world are open to receiving Peruvian avocados, and what we need to do now is maintain, consolidate, and grow this position so that we can continue exporting and, when we reach 1mn tonnes, it will be a sustainable business for the more than 30,000 producers,” Castro said.
“We shouldn’t only think of Southeast Asia as an opportunity for growth, but we must also look at the South American market, which is completely open.”
ProHass members currently represent just 14 per cent of Peru’s planted area, but account for 39 per cent of the country’s avocado exported volume.
In 2024, Peru’s avocado exports totalled 571,470 tonnes.
