Strong end-of-season demand for New Zealand avocados in Australia has assured Bay of Plenty AVOCO growers of Orchard Gate Returns in the mid-teens – a result which demonstrates the export giant's ability to succeed in all market conditions.

AVOCO growers should receive average Orchard Gate Returns of $15 this season, despite a record export crop.

The 2014-2015 season has wound up with AVOCO growers receiving more than $15 on an all size average for export fruit.

These returns, achieved during a year of heavy volume, have been welcomed by local growers – many of whom were stung three years ago during the last heavy crop when returns fell to less than $10 a tray after some exporters oversupplied the Australian market.

During 2011-2012 there were 3.7 million avocado trays sent offshore. This last season, volumes were 21 per cent higher and the industry set new records, exporting 4.5 million trays out of a total crop of more than seven million trays.

AVOCO's share of exports this year was 62 per cent. About two-thirds of shipments were sent to Australia while the remainder was split between the US and Asia and marketed through AVANZA.

AVOCO director John Carroll says it's incredibly pleasing that AVOCO fulfilled its vision by delivering strong returns to growers in a challenging season.

Foreign exchange
'Not only did we export a record volume of fruit, we were up against a bumper Western Australian crop and trading under more prohibitive foreign exchange conditions.

'Despite these challenges, AVOCO's estimate of the shift in OGR between this season and the last heavy one is a lift of 50 per cent. Our ability to execute a successful export strategy means AVOCO growers will receive 50 per cent more money per tray.”

'As a joint entity, we've created a commercial force that now has the scale to manage harvest volumes and fruit flow better than ever before. This has created an environment where AVOCO can maximise returns to growers more effectively than its competitors – in each and every season but especially so when volumes are heavy.”

Lessons learnt during 2011-2012 sparked the formation of AVOCO and a desire among industry leaders to work more collaboratively to avoid market collapse.

In 2013, export rivals Southern Produce and Primor set aside their differences to form AVOCO and in doing so became New Zealand's largest avocado exporter.

A focus of the 2014-2015 season was on market diversification and the execution of an export strategy that allowed Australia ‘to breathe' during potential periods of oversupply.

The US, especially, served as a ‘release valve' with significant volumes being shipped to the US through AVANZA in a programme run in conjunction with US-based Mission Produce.

Asia awareness
AVANZA, which handles 93 per cent of the industry's shipments outside Australia, also invested in marketing campaigns across Asia to increase awareness of New Zealand's ‘in season' avocados and stimulate consumption. This activity led to export growth across Singapore and Korea with sales in Japan growing by 144 per cent compared to the previous season.

AVOCO director Alistair Young says this season's result proves that AVOCO is a business that can adapt and succeed in all market conditions.

'Our inaugural season saw our growers enjoy tray prices in the mid-to-high $20s due to high consumer demand and low volumes. A season of high volume was always going to be different but our growers and expert teams dug deep and delivered consumers a premium product which saw them coming back for more,” says Alistair.

'Working collaboratively, we've demonstrated our ability to deliver results that not only benefit AVOCO growers, but the whole industry. We're actively encouraging more growers to join us.”