Avocado volume sales are up by double digits and expected to increase further in the months ahead.
In the past year, Brits bought 17.4% more avocados year on year [NIQ 52 w/e 20 April 2024] – making them the fastest rising product in the fresh vegetable category, and the only one in double-digit growth. Value sales also rose, up 9.4% to £299.3m.
These gains come despite an increase in average price, said Zac Bard, chairman at industry body the World Avocado Organization, who added, “we have seen new customers coming into the market as well as loyal shoppers”.
He predicted avocados – a fruit, despite NIQ’s classification, which is based on where supermarkets stock the item – would see even more growth as the cost of living eased.
“Avocados are still a relatively new product in many markets and penetration, while increasing steadily, is still relatively low [with] room for a further upside,” said Bard.
Currently though, UK sales are lower than those in Europe. Fewer than half of UK consumers now buy avocados, according to WAO figures. By comparison, in France and Spain at least 75% of households buy the fruit.
“The biggest consumers of avocado in the UK are aged between 35-44 and 65+,” Bard noted. “However, the next biggest opportunity that is showing the most growth year on year, comes from the 25-44 year old millennials and gen Z with high disposable income.”
Avocados also had another advantage. While their prices are “largely dependent” on the weather, the fruits have been “less affected” by recent adverse conditions than other types of produce, Ward said.
Benefiting from growing seasons in both northern and southern hemispheres, avocados are more resilient against climate change such as drought or heavy rains, he explained. “If there’s a shortage, it’s usually only for a short time.”
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