As the calendar flips from July to August, consumers' eating habits change, says Brooke Becker, vice president of sales with Mission Produce.
“We start to see the consumer shift focus from summer dining to back-to-school meal prepping,” she said. “We leverage our consumer-friendly portfolio of avocado products to drive sales at retail."
And avocados once again take center stage with back-to-school, football and fall events around the corner. Marketers say the football season and the back-to-school period are excellent opportunities to put avocados at the forefront.
“We look forward to the fall because that's really when our season really gears up and when we start driving a lot of the promotional activity primarily focused around what we call a time period from October November, December,” said Stephanie Bazan, senior vice president of commercial strategy for Avocados From Mexico.
Avocados From Mexico's major focus is the start of fall football season. The organization sponsored a college football bowl game last year — the 2023 Avocados From Mexico Cure Bowl — and will once again be the official avocado of the college football playoffs. Bazan says football and avocados go hand in hand.
“It is a prime selling event time period,” Bazan said. “There is a strong association with avocados, guacamole and fall football. Football represents over 1,600 viewing occasions. We see it as 1,600 eating occasions. It's a perfect time for either home-gating or tailgating.”
Tara Murray, vice president of marketing with Fresh Innovations, says a partnership with the Dallas Cowboys helps promote the Yo Quiero brand through the NFL team's guacamole containers and advertisements throughout the Cowboys' home field at AT&T Stadium.
“We also utilize their millions of followers on social media to promote our Yo Quiero Dip Destination,” she said.
Angela Tallant, senior director of sales and business development for Naturipe Avocados, says avocados also are a quick and healthy solution for families.
“Back-to-school can be a fun and exciting time. It can also be a bit stressful for parents as they work to get back into a routine," she said. "By focusing on healthy eating at home, people learn about the health benefits of avocados. Avocados are an easy and versatile ingredient that fits into busy back-to-school routines.”
Fresh Del Monte Produce taps into the back-to-school season by sharing avocado preparation techniques, recipes and quick snacks such as guacamole, avocado toast and stuffed avocados.
“In the fall, we emphasize back-to-school themes to cater to the specific needs of families during this busy time of year,” said Kirk Marquardt, senior director of sales for Fresh Del Monte Produce. “We curate a selection of easy-to-prepare avocado recipes for lunches and snacks. We understand that families are looking for convenient and healthy meal options during this busy time, so we provide solutions that cater to their needs.”
Crop outlook
Droughts in Mexico haven't impacted availability, Murray says. Bazan says Avocados From Mexico projects 5% more supply going into fall this year.“We have a very strong push to drive that demand in the first six months of the year,” Bazan said. “We want to make sure that we're set up and by the time we get to the Super Bowl, we've got a lot of good demand in the marketplace.”
Tallant says although Mexico supplies about 90% of the avocados consumed in the U.S., Colombian avocados will offer a great promotional opportunity this year.
“This fall, we're kicking off the harvest with the aventajada crop — aptly named ‘advantaged' because it matures ahead of the rest. This fruit comes mainly from mid-elevations and is part of the main season's offerings,” she said. “Early fall is a perfect time to spotlight small fruit and bagged avocados in promotions. As we move through the season, expect a steady mix of avocado sizes coming from Mexico.”
And Becker says that while Mexican avocados might come in smaller this year, it's an excellent opportunity to use those smaller sizes to an advantage.
“Early projections are showing Mexico's size curve to peak on smaller sizes,” Becker said. "Small-sized avocados are perfect for fall promotions around back-to-school lunches and meal planning.”
Promotions and marketing
Becker says Mission Produce helps its retail partners understand how best to keep avocado sales rolling through data-driven tactics. Mission Produce launched a price sensitivity study to get a better idea of consumers' attitudes toward food costs and then offer actionable solutions for retailers.“The data shows that $1 is the pricing sweet spot when 84% of avocado shoppers are willing to part with their dollars for an avocado — while still driving retail revenue,” she said.
Tallant says touting the health benefits of avocados through produce displays can drive sales this fall.
“Educational signage explaining the health benefits of avocados and the versatility of avocados are also helpful ways to educate shoppers about avocados,” she said.
Becker says cross-promotions can help call more attention to avocados while helping drive sales. Places such as next to the deli for sandwiches and near chips for guacamole are perfect places to help boost sales.
“For example, by cross-promoting avocados with mangoes, a retailer can build awareness for multiple products simultaneously and capture shoppers looking for promotions on either product,” she said.
Marquardt agrees, noting places like secondary displays, endcaps and POS materials can help boost avocado purchases. While he says Fresh Del Monte Produce saw an increase in purchases with other tropical items, traditional guacamole ingredients seem to hold steady.
“We are seeing the most traction in the avocado commodity by cross-merchandising with ingredients like tomatoes, onions and cilantro to remind consumers about the versatility and popularity of guacamole,” he said.
Tallant says other activities in the fall, including Halloween, can also help drive sales.
“According to the Hass Avocado Board, small avocados were a big hit during Halloween, grabbing nearly half of the market share, while bagged avocados came in second,” she said. “[The Haas Avocado Board] also noted that avocado sales have been steadily climbing during Thanksgiving. Last year, small sizes (60s and smaller) saw impressive double-digit growth compared to previous years.”
Bazan says as retailers think about marketing avocados this fall, it's a good idea to carry two bulk sizes and bags. Bags make up about 20% of Avocados From Mexico's sales, she says, adding that bags offer multiple sales and more real estate for promotions and messaging.
“We always recommend to make sure that the retailer is carrying at least two bulk sizes — a larger and a smaller size — that will allow them to have enough price differentiation and also one bag,” she said. “If the market shifts at any time, you don't have to reset tables. It's a two-pronged approach between bagged and bulk.”
Bazan says a combination of promotions such as loyalty or volume-driving offers, in-store displays, rebates and promotions can also help boost sales.
“We see October, November, December as an opportunity to drive sales,” she said. “And in order to push the sales, we've got to have strong offers in place. … We want to make sure that during the fall, we've got a lot of sales-driving offers to help that demand.”
Bazan says Avocados From Mexico will offer college football playoffs packaging with a QR code for a $1.50 rebate for verified purchases. While Avocados From Mexico deploys many promotions during the football season, the organization will shift to pink bags in October for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Avocados From Mexico will donate $100,000 to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
“We're also offering retailers the opportunity to partner with us with what we call our pink displays — pink bags with displays,” she said. “We've actually gotten a lot of good traction on that from our customers thus far.”
Naturipe, too, promotes Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, Tallant says.
“Breast Cancer Awareness Month attracts significant public attention and support,” she said. “By connecting avocado promotions, retailers can effectively drive sales while supporting an important cause that matters to many customers.”