New Zealand quality update

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

 

At the end of 2018, the industry was concerned about the potential impact of the quality of New Zealand fruit in the Australian market. Quality was variable, due to factors ranging from local conditions in New Zealand at picking to delays in clearing entry requirements in Australia.

In the last Avo Insider we outlined a number of steps Avocados Australia was taking, as members reported their concerns about the potential impact on the market generally, should consumers have negative experiences.

Working to improve import flow

Avocados Australia is working with the Australian Horticulture Exporters and Importers Association (AHEIA) to seek changes to ensure New Zealand fruit is not delayed at the border, leading to old, poor quality fruit on retail shelves. As we reported last edition, AHEIA have engaged a consultant in Canberra to work with government to seek changes.

While some may think it is a good thing that New Zealand fruit is being held up at the border and the quality is inferior to the Australian fruit, the reality is that Australian production currently cannot meet demand during our summer and this is likely to continue in the short term. Consumers don’t necessarily distinguish a bad New Zealand avocado from a bad Australian avocado, it’s just a bad avocado and they may not buy another one for a while.

Assessing quality on the shelf

Before Christmas, Avocados Australia initiated a small-scale Hort Innovation-funded project to sample and assess the quality of avocados on retail shelves.

In total, 31 samples (310 fruit in total) of New Zealand fruit and 32 samples (320 fruit) of Australian avocados were collected from retail stores in Brisbane and Sydney in late December and early January.

Overall, 22% of the New Zealand fruit had significant damage (mainly rots), compared to 10% of Australian fruit (mainly bruising). The final report for this project is in the BPR Library, in the R&D Report section.

The report determined that above average rainfall and flooding events earlier in the New Zealand growing season were likely to be the underlying cause of the high incidence of rots in New Zealand fruit. “Delays during transport and ripening, due to quarantine intervals may have also contributed. However, severity of rots can also be induced by many other pre- and postharvest practices. It is essential that growers and packers follow postharvest best practice to try and minimise this issue,” the report said.

This data has been provided to AHEIA, Australian Government, Coles, Woolworths and New Zealand industry to demonstrate the extent of the problem and to substantiate the need for an efficient quarantine inspection program and improved disease management in New Zealand.

As a side note, most of the damage to Australian fruit was due to bruising but as the report noted, this was likely to have been caused at the retail level.

“Nearly 8% of the Australian fruit was bruised (>10% flesh volume) compared to only 1% of New Zealand fruit. This was the result of the higher levels of bruising in Australian fruit purchased in Brisbane. The Brisbane fruit was mostly purchased directly off loose displays at independent retailers, rather than out of trays. This was due to the general lack of Australian fruit at the major retailers in Brisbane at the time of sampling. The increased bruising in this fruit is therefore likely to be the result of consumer (and potentially store staff) handling,” the report said.

This just demonstrates the importance of the work we encourage throughout the supply chain, from the orchard to the retail store. Educating our customers and consumers about how to best handle avocados is just as important to maintaining quality as implementing best practice from the farm to the wholesaler or distribution centre.

 

This article was prepared for the March 2019 Avo Insider.

Electioneering is here

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

 

The Coalition is working up to calling a federal election this year, and it’s definitely showing with both major parties announcing (and denouncing) policies. As Avocados Australia CEO, I recently attended a function in Brisbane to hear from the person who could well be our next agriculture minister.
Avocados Australia met with our current Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud in April 2018, and we have requested to meet with current Shadow Agriculture Minister Joel Fitzgibbon. I attended a recent Rural Press Club event in Brisbane to learn more about what’s guiding Mr Fitzgibbon in his role.
It was encouraging to hear Mr Fitzgibbon say that he wanted Australian agriculture to “speak at least as much about product value as we do volume”.
However, he clearly warned that he believed Australia’s natural resource base to be in decline, with ecosystems under “enormous stress”.
“Agriculture policy should begin and end with a focus on our natural environment which is also – next to technology – the most likely place to secure productivity gains and to produce the best defence to drought,” he told the crowd. “I would like the opportunity to build a consensus that our soil and water resources should be our overarching priority. And if we can achieve that, to then work with the sector to secure the best policy responses: responses which achieve and secure sustainable profitability.”
While mostly talking about animal welfare, Mr Fitzgibbon said he believed there were more people than ever listening to the debate about environmental and animal welfare concerns. “We need to demonstrate that we are moving, and we need to be able to point to the things the industry has already achieved or is on track to achieve. We don’t talk about our environmental and animal welfare achievements regularly enough or loud enough or even convincingly enough,” he said at the event.
For the avocado industry, this is an important message. We are a high-value crop for the Australian economy but we’re already seeing increasing coverage worldwide about the potential negatives from water use (there are accusations in Chile and New Zealand about water being diverted for avocados), labour (the recent Harvest Trail inquiry was not entirely positive for the Australian horticulture industry), and crime (think Mexican drug cartels). Some restaurants and cafes in the UK have even stopped serving avocado.
There’s even been questions here in Australia about if our product is truly suitable for the vegan diet, given the use of bees by some orchardists.
The message is about our social licence. The avocado industry needs to be aware of consumer sentiment and the impact it can have on future demand – the consumer is king and we need avocado to remain high in their regard.

Click here to read a copy of Joel Fitzgibbon’s full speech to the Rural Press Club.

This article was produced for the March 2019 edition of the Avo Insider

Cherry lessons

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

 

Australian cherries from mainland growing areas have had a successful first full season of trade with China. Cherries are airfreighted to the Chinese mainland market, and there are useful learnings here for avocados, if/when we gain access.

It’s important that as we chase additional markets as our avocado production expands, we learn all we can from others’ experiences. For cherries, the industry sought feedback from distributors, importers and retail partners about why Australian cherries were sought after in the market.

The keys won’t surprise you: freshness, quality and taste.

Want to know just how discerning the average Chinese consumer is?

Video: Christ White, Fruitnet Media, via LinkedIn

About 92% of attendees at cherry industry trade events in China as recently as early February cited freshness via airfreight as the key reason for purchasing Australian cherries for Chinese consumers.

However, just like avocados, Australian cherries aren’t the only ones in the market. Chile sold more than 8,000 sea-freighted containers into the market at Guangzhou in a 10-week period.

Video: Christ White, Fruitnet Media, via LinkedIn

Freshness, quality and taste are the attributes we will be relying upon to boost sales of Australian avocados in international and domestic markets. In all of our markets, our consumers are demanding premium, reliable quality, and that’s what we will need to deliver.

You can find the original Hort Innovation release here, and more from the cherry industry about transport times and in-market activities here.

This article was produced for the March 2019 Avo Insider.

New Zealand avocados cause concerns in Australia

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

Recently there has been a lot of concern around the supply of New Zealand avocados to Australia, particularly concerns with fruit quality and the negative impact of poor quality on the Australian avocado market generally. There is also concern around the competition for shelf space between New Zealand and Western Australian suppliers.

Avocados Australia has been working behind the scenes to understand the issues, sift the rumours from reality and take appropriate action on behalf of our members. The Avocados Australia board met recently and agreed on a course of action.

Quality of New Zealand fruit

Anecdotal evidence suggests the quality of New Zealand avocados sold in Australia in recent weeks has been very variable with large amounts of poor quality fruit on retail display. There are a number of possible reasons for this. Firstly, New Zealand has experienced very wet weather recently causing quality loss and fruit is of mixed maturity.  Secondly, the supply chain is being significantly disrupted with recent changes to the quarantine inspection process.  The Australian Government, as a cost cutting measure, is phasing out off-shore inspections and has moved to on-shore inspections of imported produce. Unfortunately, they have not sufficiently resourced this, so consequently, fruit is being held up at the border for up to 10 days. A lot of consignments are also being fumigated with methyl bromide which also impacts negatively on the fruit quality and shelf life.

Avocados Australia is working with the Australian Horticulture Exporters and Importers Association (AHEIA) to seek changes. AHEIA have engaged a consultant in Canberra to work with the government to seek changes. We are very hopeful that additional resources will be deployed in the near future.

We also need to gather evidence of the quality issue.  Avocados Australia has initiated a small-scale project funded through Hort Innovation to sample and assess the quality of avocados at retail shelf. This data will be provided to AHEIA, the Australian government, Coles, Woolworths and New Zealand industry to demonstrate the extent of the problem and to substantiate the need for an efficient quarantine inspection program.

The Avocados Australia board has agreed that ongoing independent monitoring of avocado retail quality needs to be reinstated. Work is underway to initiate such a project through Hort Innovation and we will engage with the New Zealand industry to seek their support for this research during the period their fruit is in our market. It is important that New Zealand suppliers are aware of the retail quality of their fruit so that issues can be addressed.

Competition with New Zealand fruit

New Zealand has long supplemented the Australian market during the summer period and has played a key role in the growth of the Australian avocado market by supporting a year-round supply of avocados on retail shelves.

Coles and Woolworths are currently sourcing New Zealand fruit exclusively for Queensland and northern New South Wales stores. They will move to supply New Zealand fruit to other regions as Australian (Western Australian) supplies run down over the next three months.

Coles and Woolworths have managed supply this way for many years because they cannot source sufficient Australian fruit to meet demand across the summer period. While they need to supplement supply with New Zealand fruit, their preference is to move discrete regions across to New Zealand supply rather than offer fruit from both countries of origin in stores. It is a difficult balancing act which requires accurate, reliable crop forecasts from both Australian and New Zealand suppliers.

Avocados Australia has recently undertaken consultation with suppliers (outside of our usual timeframes) to obtain the most up to date forecast through to the end of January. The data shows that the total available volumes (Australia and New Zealand) for December and January average out to about 315,000 trays per week (2.83M trays from 1 December to 31 January). New Zealand has recently reduced its forecast for December to February by about 300,000 trays. The forecast volumes should be manageable across this period given inherent strong demand at this time of year, as long as quality standards are maintained.

The Avocados Australia board has agreed for these forecast volumes to be discussed with Coles and Woolworths so that the entire supply chain can best manage the flow of this fruit over the next two months.

* This article was produced for the December 2018 Avo Insider.

Avocados Australia Board Meeting, November 2018

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

 

The Avocados Australia Board met in Brisbane recently to review progress with the organisation’s 2018-19 Annual Operating Plan. If you have any questions, please contact your local director.

New Hort Innovation CEO

The new CEO of Hort Innovation, Matt Brand, attended the board meeting and discussed his proposed approach to managing the company. The four-year review of Hort Innovation that was completed in September highlighted the need for significant change. Having only been in the role for a couple of months, it is early days, but his outlook and perspective was very encouraging.

Marketing program management

The Board received a presentation from Anne Larard who we commissioned to review the management of the marketing levy with Hort Innovation. The management of the marketing levy program since the formation of Hort Innovation has been very variable and we need to ensure it performs at the highest level.

Anne’s work has been very thorough, consulting key stakeholders and looking at management options for how we can get the best out of our marketing levy investment and ensure industry has greater involvement. The next step will be to discuss the options with Hort Innovation senior management to see what is possible and what will be most effective. We started this discussion with Matt Brand during our meeting.

Marketing will be important to our industry’s future, as you can read in this Avo Insider article on future production forecasts.

Export progress

The Board discussed the progress with our export strategy and agreed, in principle, that more needs to be done to achieve market access protocols for more export markets, particularly China. Medium-term production forecasts (check out the next article) clearly demonstrate the increasing urgency for new markets. The Board is considering a possible investment of Avocados Australia reserves to support actions that might fast-track new market access.

New ANVAS

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

New arrangements for ANVAS have been given the go ahead by the Avocados Australia Board. New comprehensive procedures have been developed for the production of high health avocado plants.

Under the new ANVAS program, nurseries will first be required to be accredited with NIASA (Nursery Industry Accreditation Scheme of Australia) and accredited to meet specific requirements for avocado plant production.

Nurseries that meet these requirements will be eligible to seek ANVAS accreditation, managed by Avocados Australia.

Details of the new scheme will be communicated to the broader industry early in 2019 and it is expected that more nurseries will be accredited under ANVAS to supply clean planting material.

The new requirements cover a wider range of diseases of concern and are based on a contemporary approach to providing healthy avocado plants.

Current ANVAS accredited nurseries can be found here.

Long-term production forecasts

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

The Australian avocado industry needs to significantly increase domestic consumption and increase export markets, to deal with the rising levels of production. While this has been understood for some time, the forecast has been reviewed and updated in line with the latest tree census data through OrchardInfo. It is essential that everyone continues to contribute reliable data as this is providing very useful information to support strategic industry initiatives. The analysis provides a likely scenario of production spread across the calendar year by 2025. The numbers are quite alarming and worth a look!

Booming supply on the way

Australians are already the highest consumers of avocados in the English-speaking world, but we’re going to need that trend to continue as domestic supply booms.
In 2017/18, we produced 77,000 tonnes in Australia and the impact of that has already been seen with lower returns this year. It underscores just how important our industry’s marketing is, now and into a future of even higher supply.
All long-term forecasts developed by Avocados Australia for the industry are developed using a combination of methods. A best estimate of long-term forecasts is developed by comparing the results from the various methods.
The primary methods are:

  • Method 1 – Trend projections. Based on historical production data from Infocado reports, trend lines are developed to extrapolate the data for subsequent periods. This method gives an indication of the likely future production. In some regions, it is a better indicator than others. For example, the trend line for Central Queensland shows a decline, but with new plantings, there’s actually likely to be an increase.
  • Method 2 – Planting data. Based on the data we collect through the OrchardInfo tree census and productivity monitoring we have very good data now on the areas planted in each region, the age and variety. Using this base data, yields are estimated for different aged plantings for different regions. The result is based on planting data at a point in time and does not include estimates of future plantings. The yield estimates are based on our annual productivity surveys and could be considered to be quite conservative.

A national forecast is developed by considering these two data sets. The current data suggests national production will reach about 110,000 tonnes by 2025, however, this assumes no new plantings and fairly conservative yield estimates. Presuming some plantings will continue, these trees will gradually come into production between now and 2025. Based on 100 hectares of new plantings each year from now until 2025, it is estimated that these plantings will produce an additional 5,000t by 2025 (annual total by 2025 = 115,000t).

The graph below (Figure 1) shows historical national production data from Infocado. The graph has been extrapolated to 2025 by applying an exponential trend line. Interestingly, this projects a production level of 115,000t by 2025. This would seem a probable scenario given plantings are likely to continue.

Regional trends

 

So, how much will domestic consumption need to increase?

If we assume that by 2025 no additional trees are planted, Australian supply is 110,000t, New Zealand supply is 15,000t, the Australian population is 27 million and we export 5% of production (5,500t), domestic consumption has to increase markedly.

Australians currently consume 3.5kg, per person, per year. In the above scenario, that will need to increase to 4.4kg/person/year, or 26% higher than current consumption.

If plantings continue to increase at an assumed rate of 100ha per year, Australian supply is likely to be closer to 115,000t by 2025. Based on the same assumptions as before (New Zealand supply, population and exports) but with 115,000t of Australian supply, per capita consumption will need to be 4.6kg/person (31% higher than current consumption levels).

Supply distribution

There is also likely to be a change to our supply distribution, based on the planting data from Method 2.
The model shows that in 2017 (Figure 3), supply was peaking between March and September, somewhat tailing off in October, with the lowest supplies between November and February.

From a regional analysis, based on existing plantings, the period that is likely to experience the greatest increase in supply volume will be March to May (Figure 5). This will also be the period of greatest supply in the year (Figure 4).

Based on this modelling, by 2025, during the period from March to September, about 500,000 trays (5.5kg equivalent) will need to be marketed every week. The month of May could see almost 600,000 trays of avocados each week requiring a market. Of course, the time that this fruit is marketed could be spread over a longer period, but that will put pressure on other times of the year.

What does this mean?

All of this means, we need to act now, to prepare. Avocados Australia has been proactively working with Hort Innovation and the Australian Government to secure access to new export markets. In the coming weeks, I will be in Japan, to mark our first avocado shipments to the country, from Western Australia.

This is an important protocol market for the Australian industry, and we’re working to make sure it’s the first of many. While it is not a high-priced market, strategically, it is an import market – it provides a solid precedent for quarantine measures that could be used to access other markets. It is essential that WA growers and marketers actively utilise this new protocol if we are to achieve support from the Australian Government for future market access negotiations.

In the coming weeks, I will also be in China as part of our long-term commitment to seeking access to this market.

We have, with Australian Government funding and support from industry export players, been working in current open markets to expand the understanding and knowledge of Australian avocados, encouraging retailers to provide ripe and ready offerings to consumers, with supply chain and in-store supporting materials.

We have been working closely with Hort Innovation on our industry’s domestic marketing initiatives, and high performance will clearly be essential into the future. Coupled with this, is work to improve the quality of avocados available to consumers. Both here and in our export markets.

We have made great progress, but there is clearly much more to do. All this, and more, will be vital in the coming years to secure our industry’s long-term sustainability and profitability.

 

Insurance: cyclone risk cover

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

Byline: QFF Project Manager – Natural Disaster, Ross Henry

Crop insurance against cyclones has long been viewed as fantasy by the industry in Queensland. But as each passing summer brings damaging weather events questions as to why cyclone crop insurance does not exist are renewed. A project being undertaken by Queensland Farmers Federation is looking at alternative models that might make crop insurance a feasible reality.

With many primary producers still struggling with the effects of Severe Tropical Cyclone Debbie 12 months ago, concerns regarding expense and accessibility of cyclone insurance have become more relevant.

Queensland Farmers’ Federation and industry member Growcom, along with the University of Southern Queensland and Willis Towers Watson have been investigating whether cyclone cover is possible for Queensland cane regions.

Simply, the answer is yes, but this answer has taken 18 months to arrive at.  With Queensland Government funding support through the Drought and Climate Adaptation Programme, we have been investigating alternative risk transfer insurance options for cane growers across the state – ‘alternative’ because we have focused on parametric solutions. Parametric solutions provide an alternative way of transferring the revenue or cost impact of natural disasters and differ from traditional insurance policies that require (for lack of a better term) proof of damage, usually through an insurance assessment.

With parametric or index-based insurance, a payout occurs in the event of a pre-agreed trigger event, in this case, a cyclone. Irrelevant to the damage, the cyclone itself is the trigger for the payout, making the process much simpler, faster and easier to manage for growers and the insurance company.

This type of cover is called a ‘cat in the box’. ‘Cat’ is short for catastrophe and box indicating a defined region, usually a circle, positioned over the farm.

For example, a circle with a 100km radius is centred over the farm, if a cyclone enters the circle the policy is triggered, and the payout is processed according to the agreement between the grower and the insurance company.

The cost of the policy is flexible and varies due to the extent of cover requested by the grower. Growers can tailor the policy to their needs, choosing the size of the circle, the size of the event (eg cat three cyclones or higher) and the payout amount. This product provides greater flexibility for growers to select a suitable trigger point appropriate for their farming operations – therefore keeping premiums at a reasonable cost.

If you would like to know more about this or participate in the project, please contact Ross Henry, ross@qff.org.au.

Overtime in the news

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

In a continuation of the four-year review of the Horticultural Award, the Voice of Horticulture is now lobbying to prevent the industry form being negatively impacted by possible new overtime rules.

Voice of Horticulture is concerned the final decision of the Fair Work Commission could result in significantly higher on-farm labour costs, if it is implemented as it is currently drafted.

For an example of how the changes, as currently drafted, may apply, APAL has prepared two examples: click to read those here.

The impending Fair Work Commission (FWC) decision to extend prescribed hours and overtime rates to casual employees will negatively impact on horticulture generally, including avocados.

The FWC’s decision to extend prescribed hours and overtime rates to casual employees, including employees of Seasonal Workers Programs, from 1 July 2019 will add to already high labour costs in horticulture.

In line with Voice of Horticulture, we agree that while the ordinary hours of casual employees should be no more than 12 hours per day, the ordinary daily hours of casual employees should not be limited to any specific duration due to the nature of horticultural work. We’re all depending on the weather, time of year, perishability, market demands, logistics and shelf life.

Voice of Horticulture is also continuing to advocate to increase the averaging period from eight weeks to 24 weeks. Seasonal workers, in particular, want to work long hours in short bursts to earn bigger pay packets, either to fund their own travel or to send to their families. If farmers have to restrict hours, the Seasonal Workers Programs will no longer be as enticing for workers.

* This article was produced for the July 2018 Avo Insider.

New annual operating plan in place

The Avo Insider and its contents are a member-only service of Avocados Australia. You will not see these articles in the media or our other publications.

At the recent AAL board meeting in Brisbane, the board endorsed our Annual Operating Plan for 2018-19. In 2018/19, AAL will focus on the following four areas of activity:

  • Program 1 – Industry and market data;
  • Program 2 – Industry communications and extension;
  • Program 3 – Export development; and
  • Program 4 – Industry support.

 

Program 1 – Industry and market data

In Program 1, the key issues are implementing the Infocado systems changes, including software development funded directly by Avocados Australia. Significant stakeholder engagement will be required to convert new packhouses to contributors and deliver training in the new system, ensuring timely and accurate data is available for contributors.

Program 2 – Industry communications and extension

Program 2 is funded mostly from the avocado levy through Hort Innovation with two projects budgeted in 2018-19. The AAL budget provides for a small allocation of resources internally to undertake non-Hort Innovation funded communication activities if required. In addition, a new extension and industry development project is close to being agreed with Hort Innovation and partner organisations. As part of this, AAL will be appointing a part-time Industry Development Manager to oversee the program, working closely with Queensland DAF and WA DPIRD.

Program 3 – Export development

Our Export Development work is now supported by a Hort Innovation funded project. AAL has played a significant role over many years in assisting the industry meet its export aspirations.  It has facilitated the coming together of interested parties to set up procedures and standards to support the development of the Australian avocado export sector. AAL established an Export Committee in 2015 to oversee the implementation of the industry export plan. This group has continued to meet (mainly via teleconference) on an as needs basis to provide direction for export development initiatives. Much of the work of the Export Committee will be replaced by a Project Reference Group for the new export project. An important component of work in 2018-19 will be to support industry to capitalise on the recent market access to Japan for relevant regions.

Program 4 – Industry support

The Industry Support work is not funded through direct Hort Innovation project funding. Alternative income sources such as your membership fees provide resources for the Industry Support program.

Membership

Strong membership continues to be a major and ongoing priority for AAL. In 2018/19, we will continue to focus on providing added service to members.

This will include:

  • maintenance of a member hotline to provide assistance to members to help them access information and resources
  • member support
  • maintenance of the Member section of the new website
  • continuation of Avo Insider members’ newsletter.
Hort Innovation

Ongoing work is required to seek better outcomes from Hort Innovation as it continues to evolve; regular consultation with Hort Innovation personnel will be undertaken throughout the year.

As you are probably aware, currently there is an avocado Strategic Investment Advisory Panel (SIAP) that provides advice to Hort Innovation in relation to the avocado R&D and Marketing levy program investments.

There is also an Avocado Marketing Committee that has been providing more detailed advice regarding the marketing program. Recently, Hort Innovation abolished the Marketing Committee and is in the process of establishing a new advisory mechanism.

There will now be two separate SIAPs, one for R&D and one for Marketing. These will meet jointly where there are investments that clearly overlap R&D and Marketing.

Expressions of Interest for the new Avocado Marketing SIAP will be issued by Hort Innovation very soon. It is planned that the new structure will be in place by the end of July.

AAL will continue to participate in the R&D SIAP with three positions, currently held by Jim Kochi, Daryl Boardman and John Walsh. Hort Innovation has confirmed that no more than three AAL office holders can be appointed to the R&D SIAP and the marketing SIAP. With the recent changes to the SIAP structure by Hort Innovation, representation of AAL directors on the two SIAPs will need to be revisited.

Avocados Australia will continue to provide support and guidance to Hort Innovation such as providing industry data, providing strategic advice on program investments, assisting in commissioning processes, assisting with establishing advisory processes, participating on project reference groups/steering committees.

Marketing management

Following the resignation of the Marketing Manager (Claire Tindale-Penning), Hort Innovation has appointed an external consultant to manage the avocado marketing program for the next 12 months. It plans to put the avocado marketing program out to tender in 2019 for an external provider to manage the program instead of Hort Innovation. AAL will be exploring various options during the next few months to have a greater role in influencing the direction and performance of the avocado marketing program under this new model.

ANVAS

AAL will continue to maintain the important ANVAS program which aims to provide the industry with healthy planting material. Following a considerable delay, the new project to upgrade ANVAS is now underway. We will continue to provide guidance through implementing the changes.

Representation and policy

AAL has a key role in representing the industry across all sectors of the supply chain, at all levels – local, regional, state, national and international – and ensuring a positive image for the industry. We will continue our membership to the Voice of Horticulture (for input into national horticulture policy issues affecting the avocado industry) and Plant Health Australia (biosecurity).

Also on the biosecurity front, we are allocating resources to review and update the Avocado Biosecurity Plan in 2018/19. Particular attention will be directed towards ensuring potential pest risks associated with Mexican, Chilean and Peruvian avocados are captured through this process.

 

* This article was produced for the July 2018 Avo Insider.