WHILE avocado growers on the NSW North Coast and in South East Queensland take a break from production, consumers can look forward to adding fruit from northern Qld to their trolleys and baskets, depending on supply.
It seemed that supermarket chains Coles and Woolworths had abandoned their local growers this summer, with an influx of avocados from across the ditch.
An early bumper harvest in New Zealand resulted in an influx of fruit into the Australian market in October last year, causing nothing but heartache for many Australian growers, whose fruit was forced off the supermarket shelves onto the wholesale floor.
Avocados Australia chairman and avocado grower Jim Kochi, Tinaroo Falls Avocado, Atherton, Qld, said the size of the Australian harvest had exceeded expectations.
Meanwhile, supermarkets had already ordered large volumes of NZ fruit, which created a glut on the Australian market.
“The nature of avocados is one year you can get a bumper harvest and the next you can find yourself with almost nothing,” Mr Kochi said.
“The 2010 season, for example, was very light for both Australian and NZ crops, which pushed prices dearer because of the limited supply – this season, we have seen the reverse and in consequence, we had an oversupplied market.”
Because of this unprecedented oversupply and the earlier than usual harvest of the NZ avocados, the supermarkets were forced to follow through with their orders for imported fruit.
“At Avocados Australia we have a harvest forecasting program called Infocado, which is contributed to by growers and allows industry members to predict that season’s crop,” he said.
“I can’t say for sure the reasons why this harvest was so unexpected – it’s possible that growers in the southern growing areas weren’t able to enter their production information or they simply weren’t aware of the quantity of the harvest.”
The departure of Coles and Woolworths from the market for Australian avocados caused anguish for local growers, he said, but the future of Australian avocados in the large chain stores looks good.
“With northern Qld production getting underway, both Hass and Shepard varieties will be available for consumers,” Mr Kochi said.
“The Shepard variety isn’t as popular as the Hass, but what many people will find is the Hass avocados will be past their prime – most Hass avocados will have been hanging on the tree for too long.”
Woolworths spokeswoman Siob-han Quinn said the company has been working closely with Aust-ralian suppliers to ensure a mutually beneficial outcome for growers, stores and customers.
“NSW stores will start to receive Shepard avocados from Qld suppliers at the end of the month,” Ms Quinn said.
Coles spokesman Jim Cooper said NSW supermarkets will be stocking northern Qld-sourced Shepard avocados from next week as supply increases, with no NZ avocados to be seen on their shelves.
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