Avocado glut means less green for area growers

By: LORELL FLEMING - Staff Writer | Saturday, June 3, 2006 6:58 PM PDT ∞

A decline in avocado prices resulting from a bumper crop that includes some relatively small avocados and some that are cosmetically blemished has some growers seeing "green gold" lose a bit of its luster.

For the week ended May 27, the average weekly price for lesser-quality Hass avocados of any size was 18 cents per pound, compared with 69 cents last year. Meanwhile, the average weekly price of top-grade Hass avocados was 57 cents per pound, compared with 91 cents per pound during the same period last year.

As a result, packers are advising growers to bring them only the largest and most attractive fruit and leave behind the smaller avocados or those damaged on the outside by avocado thrips, insects that feed on the tender skin of young avocados.

Guy Witney, director of industry affairs at the California Avocado Commission, said growers who aren't mindful of what they're sending to packers and shippers could see their profits dwindle. The commission serves as the research and marketing arm of the California industry.

"Growers in the south, predominantly North San Diego County and Southwest Riverside County, where much of the small damaged fruit is coming in from, need to carefully consider whether it makes any sense to put small-sized, thrips-damaged and cull fruit (fruit that is not suitable for market) in bins heading to packing facilities," Witney said. "This fruit will likely result in a combined net charge from their packer when one considers there will be a picking charge, handling charge, assessments (from the commission and a related board), and/or (a possible) dump charge if there is no market for these categories."

The abundance of smaller fruit and blemished fruit is due in part to this year's bumper crop, Witney explained. The commission estimates that when the avocado harvest is completed, this year's yield will be 555 million pounds of all avocado varieties, compared with about 300 million pounds in 2005. A majority of the California-grown avocados are Hass. Avocado harvesting in California is at its peak, and will conclude sometime around the end of August.

Shipping records set

The bumper crop has spurred record-setting shipping into the domestic market over the last few weeks, according to the industry commission. In the week ended May 27, more than 17 million pounds of Hass avocados were shipped ---- the highest shipping volume recorded for California avocados, according to commission statistics. Last year during that same period, the California industry shipped close to 11.5 million pounds of Hass.

Since there has been more fruit on the trees this year, the thrips have had more to munch on. The bugs leave leathery, brown scars that can cover an entire fruit. Although industry experts say the light-green flesh of the thrip-damaged fruit is fine to eat, the appearance often makes the fruit unappealing to buyers.

The average price for fruit graded as "Number 2" because of skin damage often resulting from pests or sun exposure was 18 cents ---- 51 cents less than the average price during the same period last year.

One of the biggest markets for Number 2 avocados is the food-service industry. But it is hard for the food-service businesses, such as a restaurant, to drive demand like a supermarket, which can hold sales to help spur demand, Bob Lucy, of Del Rey Avocado packinghouse in Fallbrook, explained in an interview Tuesday.

Rankin McDaniel, of McDaniel Fruit packinghouse in Fallbrook, said Tuesday that the problem of having excessive amounts of smaller and cosmetically blemished fruit in the domestic market will be around for the next eight to 10 weeks.

"The trend is here, and will definitely be an issue for a while," McDaniel added. "In the long run, the market always finds its equilibrium."

For avocado grower Paul Herron of Fallbrook, that equilibrium can't come soon enough, he said in an interview Wednesday.

"This is not a bump in the road. It's a pothole," Herron said. "Let's hope the pothole gets fixed."

Quantity up, quality down

With 6 acres of avocado trees in Rainbow, Herron said about 70 percent of his crop this year is thrip-damaged. He has had his grove for about three years, and this is his third major crop.

"This will be my best quantity crop," Herron said, declining to give his yield numbers. "But not best for quality. I expected it to be bad, but not this bad."

Jerome Stehly, whose 11-year-old grove management business oversees 1,500 acres of mostly avocados and some citrus, said in an interview Tuesday that his staff will be picking only the fruit that is larger and more cosmetically appealing, at least for a while.

"It happens about this time of the year: Fruit starts dropping, and some growers pick everything. It just so happens that we have a big crop this year," said Stehly, who also owns 600 acres of mostly avocado trees. "We've hit market saturation."

Size and appearance are key factors in determining prices for avocados. Generally speaking, the larger and least-blemished fruit commands the higher price, increasing the grower's share of the sale.

In May, before cautioning growers to be aware of what they pick and send to market, some area packinghouses had asked growers to reduce their harvesting for a few days.

McDaniel Fruit asked growers to reduce their harvest on May 19, 20 and 21 ---- and reduce the amount of any fruit, regardless of size or quality, they brought in during that time, Rankin McDaniel said.

'No-pick' order issued

Lucy said that Del Rey asked growers not to pick at all during that same weekend, and he knew of no organized, industrywide no-pick requests. He noted that was one of the first weekends in a long time the request had to be made.

"We just need to catch our breath," Lucy added. "It's us saying, 'Let's slow things down and not get burdened with the smaller fruit and the Number 2s.'

"It worked in a sense that it lowered the volume coming into our packinghouse. But it had no market effect," Lucy added.

Unlike many growers and grove managers in San Diego and Riverside counties, Stehly said he was able to minimize thrip damage by doing pre-bloom spraying on his conventional groves, and releasing beneficial bugs (predators to the thrip) on organic groves.

"This is definitely a painful time for many growers," Stehly said. "No doubt about it."

Temperatures and rainy weather in spring 2005 created conditions in which thrips thrive, Witney explained. Another problem during the growing season for this year's crop was the difficulty in getting aerial spray treatments against thrips applied to the groves because of the rainy weather. In addition, the area that needed treatment spanned from Escondido to the northern parts of Temecula, Witney added.

"There were simultaneous needs for helicopters over that wide area at that time," Witney said. "But I think we're over the hump with this particular pest now. Growers are much more aware of timing."

Contact staff writer Lorell Fleming at (760) 731-5798 or lfleming@nctimes.com.