The Price of Avocados

So there's been a shortage this year which has driven the price up. A couple articles I read listed the "skyrocketing" price per avocado as around $1.25.

The average price I've seen for a Haas in Chicago over the last 2-3 months is around $2, sometimes more.

Is this because we're farther from the source as well as the general higher cost of living here?

I can't remember a time I've seen them consistently priced this high before.

I checked a few different stores tonight (all in Rogers Park) and saw avocados labeled as 'large' for $2.99 at two places, although they were only slightly bigger than normal.

The same size avocados - although not labeled as 'large' - were $2.49 at Fresh Farms on Devon.

I also saw regular sized avocados for $1.79 at Aldi on California near Devon. I'm not certain but I think these were a touch smaller than the larger ones.

Cermak Produce near Ridge and Pratt had the $3 "large" avocados as well as some smaller ones (about half as big) for $1.49. <---These were noticeably smaller than the Aldi avocados.

And that concludes my avocado report for today!

In another format, extramsg, who owns a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Or, was speculating whether to remove guacamole from the menu or charge 200% more.

There appears to be a shortage.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:In another format, extramsg, who owns a Mexican restaurant in Portland, Or, was speculating whether to remove guacamole from the menu or charge 200% more.

There appears to be a shortage.

Regards,
Cathy2

Yeah I've read its either getting worse, or the Mexican farms are holding product back to drive up the price, since they are basically the only ones producing right now.

What's the name of Extramsg's restaurant? I knew he had a Jewish Deli type place but I hadn't heard about the other one.

There are two types of Avocados generally on the market.
The 'typical' Hass variety, and the larger smooth skinned 'Florida' or 'Lula' variety.
So the price depends on the variety.
We purchase no Avocados from Mexico, so for at least a year have subsisted on the Florida.
Since the Florida is so much larger, the typical price is about $2-$3/per.
I don't know why, except for price, that nowhere I shop has California Hass?-Richard

From the Huffington Post

Climate change has taken its toll on avocado production. Massive droughts and record-high temperatures in California and Mexico have decimated the water-intensive crop. Unfortunately, the avocado’s falling production coincides with its growing popularity in America.

Extramsg's Mexican restaurant appears to be in Chinatown from various comments he's made:

Mi Mero Mole
5026 SE Division St & 32 NW 5th Ave
Portland, OR 97206
(503) 232-8226
http://mmmtacospdx.com/

budrichard wrote:There are two types of Avocados generally on the market.
The 'typical' Hass variety, and the larger smooth skinned 'Florida' or 'Lula' variety.
So the price depends on the variety.
We purchase no Avocados from Mexico, so for at least a year have subsisted on the Florida.
Since the Florida is so much larger, the typical price is about $2-$3/per.
I don't know why, except for price, that nowhere I shop has California Hass?-Richard

Are the Florida ones the giant, bright green ones? I thought about trying one since they cost much less, but I read their texture is quite different from the hass avocado, and they aren't as creamy. I usually use mine for guacamole - are they good for that?

bnowell724 wrote:
Are the Florida ones the giant, bright green ones? I thought about trying one since they cost much less, but I read their texture is quite different from the hass avocado, and they aren't as creamy. I usually use mine for guacamole - are they good for that?

I never use the Florida ones for anything. They have no taste, compared to Hass avocados. I'd rather do without than use one of those watery Florida specimens.

The only thing Fla avos are good for is the trash can.

budrichard wrote:There are two types of Avocados generally on the market.
The 'typical' Hass variety, and the larger smooth skinned 'Florida' or 'Lula' variety.
So the price depends on the variety.
We purchase no Avocados from Mexico, so for at least a year have subsisted on the Florida.
Since the Florida is so much larger, the typical price is about $2-$3/per.
I don't know why, except for price, that nowhere I shop has California Hass?-Richard

There's only one typo of avocado. The crap that comes from Florida doesn't deserve to share the name.

I was considering buying one of the Florida ones to experiment, but the consensus here and elsewhere online seems to be that they aren't very tasty. Apparently they have 50% less fat than the Hass avocados, so that's why they aren't as creamy.

For a number of years now, I've bought two avocados on most weekends to eat a half for four of the five day workweek. After much trial and error, shopping around, success and disappointment, I have concluded that Mariano's has the best. However, you do pay a premium (as much as $3/ea) and there are times that I skip them due to finding the selection entirely overripe or underripe (see: last weekend). Mariano's (or their supplier) also has the unfortunate habit of putting a Ripe Now! label on every one, despite sometimes being baseball hard and kelly green or sunken, jet black water balloons. That said, when they're good, they're great!

Honorable mention goes to Fresh Farms-Large.

I have no use for the Florida variety. Avocados shouldn't be 'juicy.'

Maybe you use the FL varietal to make large batch avocado spreads to cut fat but I can think of no other reason to touch them. I do believe they explain some lean tasting avocado spreads I have experienced over the years. It had not crossed my mind until now that would explain the taste of some spreads.

After buying hard, or medium, or soft avocadoes and forgetting to use them at the right time, I have recently gone the path of least resistance and have been buying the Wholly Guacamole Classic minis, in 2 oz tubs. Expiration dates are about 2 weeks out as long as they're kept refrigerated. Good stuff, used as a spread on sandwiches or for dipping carrots and peppers.

jnm123 wrote:I have recently gone the path of least resistance and have been buying the Wholly Guacamole Classic minis, in 2 oz tubs.

What's in that stuff? Is it fairly chemical free?

I dont love the wholly guacamole, mostly because it is too smooth, but the ingredients are pretty simple.

Ingredients:
Hass Avocado, Jalapeño Puree (White Vinegar, Jalapeño Peppers, Salt) Dehydrated Onion, Salt, Granulated Garlic.

-Will

It says, Stever, per their box advertising:

all natural
no preservatives
hand-scooped
gluten-free
kosher
homemade taste
great for on-the-go

Ingredients: Hass avocado, vinegar, Jalapeno pepper, dehydrated onion, salt, granulated garlic. Distributed by Fresherized Foods, Saginaw, TX. Product of Mexico.

Just bought some at the store--Mariano's only had the spicy (too spicy for me), so I got some at SuperTarget. The Classic has a great taste. Oh, BTW, the price fluctuates--usually they're in $3.79-$4.29 range, today they were $5.69. I still think it's a good value even at that price.

But tell me--with no preservatives, how in Hades can the expiration on this box be December 9?

(You just beat me out on the ingrediments, Will. I owe you a Coke. But I disagree that it's too smooth--it does have a few small chunks in each little tub, somewhat miniscule though.)

tcdup wrote:From the Huffington Post

Climate change has taken its toll on avocado production. Massive droughts and record-high temperatures in California and Mexico have decimated the water-intensive crop. Unfortunately, the avocado’s falling production coincides with its growing popularity in America.

Another resource.
http://www.freshfruitportal.com/news/20 ... dersupply/

Looks like I may have to use Mexican avocados.
I agree that the 'Forida' do not make good guacamole but I have never used the Florida for Guacamole, only salads so we always had both in hand.-Richard

budrichard wrote:Looks like I may have to use Mexican avocados.

I'm curious, what is your rationale for not using Mexican avocados?

stevez wrote:

jnm123 wrote:I have recently gone the path of least resistance and have been buying the Wholly Guacamole Classic minis, in 2 oz tubs.

What's in that stuff? Is it fairly chemical free?

The Wholly Guacamole products are pretty good. Nothing artificial added. Here's what's in their Classic:

"Ingredients:
Hass Avocado, Jalapeño Puree (White Vinegar, Jalapeño Peppers, Salt) Dehydrated Onion, Salt, Granulated Garlic."

Is it what you'd make at home? Not quite, but we have used it as a base, adding in tomatoes, onions and fresh avocado. They pasteurize under high pressure so as not to introduce heat to alter flavors.

budrichard wrote:

tcdup wrote:From the Huffington Post

Climate change has taken its toll on avocado production. Massive droughts and record-high temperatures in California and Mexico have decimated the water-intensive crop. Unfortunately, the avocado’s falling production coincides with its growing popularity in America.

Another resource.
http://www.freshfruitportal.com/news/20 ... dersupply/

Looks like I may have to use Mexican avocados.
I agree that the 'Forida' do not make good guacamole but I have never used the Florida for Guacamole, only salads so we always had both in hand.-Richard

I can't stand the flavor (or absence thereof?) in the Florida variety. If I'm making guac or a salad, it's only Haas, either from the US or Mexico.

I buy a bag of avos (normally 6 to a bag) for around $6-7 @ Costco every week. Got one there a week ago and it may have crept up to $7.50? Typically Mexico, medium sized and not ripe. They ripen in 2-3 days and then go in the fridge for an additional 3-4 days. Very little browning and taste/texture remains solid. Occasionally they are Peruvian sourced and not quite as good - but still way better than FL.

Message deleted

I'm surprised that there is no intel out there on the real situation. My Testa Produce rep warned me weeks ago that this was on the way. I'm now paying $92 rather than low $40's for a 48 ct. case of Mexican avocados

Mexican farmers cut US avocado supply
Allegedly, due to a negotiation tactic by Mexican avocado growers, prices in California of the fruits are up close to 400 percent. Mexican growers are reportedly withholding the fruit from packers as they negotiate higher prices, and that has put a stranglehold on the volume of avocados heading north. Instead of the roughly 45 million pounds the US imported on a weekly basis this time last year, the Hass Avocado Board reports that only 13.7 million pounds were imported last week. As such, the price has gone up — and that is felt both by the average shopper and local restaurants.
The Chronicle spoke to Joe Hargrave, who owns four Tacolicious restaurants and uses over 1,000 avocados a day, for his take on the situation. His wholesale prices have doubled from roughly $40 for a case to $80, but that price hasn't yet been passed on to consumers. “Maybe we’ll have our waiters say you shouldn’t get the guacamole," he joked, as a way to decrease demand, "it’s not very good.”
Large chain supermarkets like Safeway will likely escape the brunt of this price increase — they have long-term contracts in place to guarantee prices, as the Chron notes. It's the smaller shops and restaurants that will really be hit.
So, what's a guac lover to do? Fortunately or unfortunately, the answer right now is "just wait." Growers and packers need to finish their negotiation, and when that happens shipments should resume.
Source: sfist.com/The Chronicle
Publication date: 10/14/2016

(So avocados are not being shipped. They're rotting on the plants.)

It sucks but it's really hard to begrudge the growers. It's not as if they're withholding critical services. No one's getting rich farming avocados.

=R=

The only avocados I have seen in the market are about the size of a cactus pear and are $0.99/ lb.

The great part about food inflation is that when a particular product goes us ridiculously high due to season or shortage or cartel activity.

Now that eggs are $0.59/doz, it is time to scratch avacadoes off the menu ...

stoutisgoodfood wrote:I buy a bag of avos (normally 6 to a bag) for around $6-7 @ Costco every week. Got one there a week ago and it may have crept up to $7.50? Typically Mexico, medium sized and not ripe. They ripen in 2-3 days and then go in the fridge for an additional 3-4 days. Very little browning and taste/texture remains solid. Occasionally they are Peruvian sourced and not quite as good - but still way better than FL.

If Costco is bringing in Peruvian avocados, I'd recommend calling or writing them to express concern. The Peruvian avocado moth is a major threat to California's entire avocado crop and every shipment from Peru is just increasing the risk of importing an invasive species.

gnarchief wrote:

stoutisgoodfood wrote:I buy a bag of avos (normally 6 to a bag) for around $6-7 @ Costco every week. Got one there a week ago and it may have crept up to $7.50? Typically Mexico, medium sized and not ripe. They ripen in 2-3 days and then go in the fridge for an additional 3-4 days. Very little browning and taste/texture remains solid. Occasionally they are Peruvian sourced and not quite as good - but still way better than FL.

If Costco is bringing in Peruvian avocados, I'd recommend calling or writing them to express concern. The Peruvian avocado moth is a major threat to California's entire avocado crop and every shipment from Peru is just increasing the risk of importing an invasive species.

They aren't sneaking them in packed in wheelwells of trucks, their suppliers are following the same importation guidelines that everyone else does.

WARNING: Painfully long read:

§ 319.56-50 Hass avocados from Peru.
Fresh Hass variety avocados (Persea americana P. Mill.) may be imported into the continental United States from Peru only under the conditions described in this section. These conditions are designed to prevent the introduction of the following quarantine pests: Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann), the South American fruit fly; Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), the Mediterranean fruit fly; Coccus viridis (Green), the green scale; Ferrisia malvastra (McDaniel), a mealybug; and Stenoma catenifer Walsingham, the avocado seed moth.

(a) General requirements.

(1) The national plant protection organization (NPPO) of Peru must provide a workplan to APHIS that details the activities that the NPPO of Peru will, subject to APHIS' approval of the workplan, carry out to meet the requirements of this section. The NPPO of Peru must also establish a trust fund in accordance with § 319.56-6.

(2) The avocados must be grown at places of production that are registered with the NPPO of Peru and that meet the requirements of this section.

(3) The avocados must be packed for export to the United States in packinghouses that are registered with the NPPO of Peru and that meet the requirements of this section.

(4) Avocados from Peru may be imported in commercial consignments only.

(b) Monitoring and oversight.

(1) The NPPO of Peru must visit and inspect registered places of production monthly, starting at least 2 months before harvest and continuing until the end of the shipping season, to verify that the growers are complying with the requirements of paragraphs (c) and (e) of this section and follow pest control guidelines, when necessary, to reduce quarantine pest populations. Any personnel conducting trapping and pest surveys under paragraph (d) of this section must be trained and supervised by the NPPO of Peru. APHIS may monitor the places of production if necessary.

(2) In addition to conducting fruit inspections at the packinghouses, the NPPO of Peru must monitor packinghouse operations to verify that the packinghouses are complying with the requirements of paragraph (f) of this section.

(3) If the NPPO of Peru finds that a place of production or packinghouse is not complying with the requirements of this section, no fruit from the place of production or packinghouse will be eligible for export to the United States until APHIS and the NPPO of Peru conduct an investigation and appropriate remedial actions have been implemented.

(4) The NPPO of Peru must retain all forms and documents related to export program activities in places of production and packinghouses for at least 1 year and, as requested, provide them to APHIS for review.

(c) Grove sanitation. Avocado fruit that has fallen from the trees must be removed from each place of production at least once every 7 days, starting 2 months before harvest and continuing to the end of harvest. Fallen avocado fruit may not be included in field containers of fruit brought to the packinghouse to be packed for export.

(d) Surveys for S. catenifer.

(1) Peruvian departamentos in which avocados are grown for export to the United States must be surveyed by the NPPO of Peru at least once annually, no more than 2 months before harvest begins, and found to be free from infestation by S. catenifer. APHIS must approve the survey protocol used to determine and maintain pest-free status and the actions to be performed if S. catenifer is detected. Surveys must include representative areas from all parts of each registered place of production in each departamento. The NPPO of Peru must cut and inspect a biometric sample of fruit at a rate determined by APHIS. Fruit sampled must be either from the upper half of the tree or from the ground. Sampled fruit must be cut and examined for the presence of eggs and larvae of S. catenifer in the pulp or seed and for the presence of eggs in the pedicel.

(2) If one or more S. catenifer is detected in the annual survey, or during any other monitoring or inspection activity, the affected place of production will be immediately suspended from the export program until appropriate measures to reestablish pest freedom, agreed upon by the NPPO of Peru and APHIS, have been taken. The NPPO of Peru must keep records of S. catenifer detections for each orchard, update the records each time the orchards are surveyed, and make the records available to APHIS inspectors upon request. The records must be maintained for at least 1 year after the beginning of the harvest.

(e) Harvesting requirements. Harvested avocados must be placed in field cartons or containers that are marked with the official registration number of the place of production. The place of production where the avocados were grown must remain identifiable when the fruit leaves the grove, at the packinghouse, and throughout the export process. The fruit must be moved to a registered packinghouse within 3 hours of harvest or must be protected from fruit fly infestation until moved. The fruit must be safeguarded by an insect-proof screen or plastic tarpaulin while in transit to the packinghouse and while awaiting packing.

(f) Packinghouse requirements.

(1) During the time registered packinghouses are in use for packing avocados for export to the United States, the packinghouses may only accept avocados that are from registered places of production and that are produced in accordance with the requirements of this section.

(2) Avocados must be packed within 24 hours of harvest in an insect-exclusionary packinghouse. All openings to the outside of the packinghouse must be covered by screening with openings of not more than 1.6 mm or by some other barrier that prevents pests from entering. The packinghouse must have double doors at the entrance to the facility and at the interior entrance to the area where the avocados are packed.

(3) Before packing, all avocados must be cleaned of all plant debris.

(4) Fruit must be packed in insect-proof packaging, or covered with insect-proof mesh or a plastic tarpaulin, for transport to the United States. These safeguards must remain intact until arrival in the United States.

(5) Shipping documents accompanying consignments of avocados from Peru that are exported to the United States must include the official registration number of the place of production at which the avocados were grown and must identify the packing shed or sheds in which the fruit was processed and packed. This identification must be maintained until the fruit is released for entry into the United States.

(g) NPPO of Peru inspection. Following any post-harvest processing, inspectors from the NPPO of Peru must inspect a biometric sample of fruit from each place of production at a rate to be determined by APHIS. The inspectors must visually inspect for the quarantine pests listed in the introductory text of this section and must cut fruit to inspect for S. catenifer. If any quarantine pests are detected in this inspection, the place of production where the infested avocados were grown will immediately be suspended from the export program until an investigation has been conducted by APHIS and the NPPO of Peru and appropriate mitigations have been implemented.

(h) Phytosanitary certificate. Each consignment of Hass avocados imported from Peru into the United States must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of Peru with an additional declaration stating that the avocados in the consignment were grown, packed, and inspected and found to be free of pests in accordance with the requirements of 7 CFR 319.56-50.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 0579-0355)
[75 FR 11, Jan. 4, 2010, as amended at 76 FR 43807, July 22, 2011]

I am in the fruit & vegetable business, and although I don't deal directly with avocadoes, I know people that do on a daily basis. Two factors are at work here--the Mexican pickers are 'striking' to a certain extent, but there have been rumors that this curtailing is being controlled by the cartels.

And as a by-product, when you have a 70-80% reduction in export with consistent demand in the US, obviously the wholesale price spikes, putting the risk with the US distributor, especially when trying to import from alternative areas like South Africa or Israel. The Mexican reduction could end in two days, two weeks, or two months, and if the distributor brings on too much expensive product from other areas at exactly the wrong time, he could be stuck holding the bag for massive losses, as much as $20-$30/ctn, with thousands of cartons on a shipment. So they are bringing in only what they need, which exacerbates the shortage at this end even more.