Seasonal Climate Outlook for North Queensland (July report) now available

The Tropical North Queensland Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub has published its July report. This resource offers insights to support growers, advisors, and industry stakeholders with seasonal planning and risk management.

Prepared by Prof Roger Stone and Dr Christa Pudmenzky, the outlook reviews a range of established and emerging climate forecasting systems and highlights several key climate signals, including:

• El Niño conditions have become established, with rainfall probabilities now reduced across much of Queensland. However, above-average rainfall probabilities remain for parts of the Far North Tropical Coast, particularly north of Cairns, while rainfall probabilities for Mareeba are close to normal and lower for regions such as the Burdekin.
• The Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) remains in a consistently negative phase, reflecting the ongoing El Niño pattern. The next Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO) event is expected between early and mid-August and may temporarily increase the likelihood of rainfall across Tropical North Queensland.
• Longer-term forecasting models continue to indicate below-average rainfall probabilities for much of Tropical North Queensland through the remainder of 2026 and into early 2027, with low rainfall probabilities forecast for the spring period across most of the region.

Read the full report

Growers and industry partners can review the full report here and consider how seasonal climate signals may inform planning for the months ahead.

Learn more and subscribe

Visit the TNQ Drought Hub website

Subscribe to the TNQ Hub newsletter here

 

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This article appears as part of the 17 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Quality remains high with very low bruising throughout 2026

Australian-grown Hass avocados maintained very high quality in June, matching May’s result of 96% acceptable fruit.

In June, only 2.7% of sampled Hass were unacceptably bruised. This result marks the sixth consecutive month of unacceptable bruising affecting less than 3% of sampled Australian Hass.

This is a great result, especially considering the 12-month average unacceptable bruising rate of 4.9% for Australian Hass. During the same period in 2024 and 2025, the average level of unacceptable bruising in Australian Hass was 3.9% and 4.6% respectively (Figure 1).

In previous years of monitoring, higher unacceptable bruising over this period was driven mainly by poor results in one or two cities. This usually arose from very high bruising at a handful of monitored stores, rather than being consistently high citywide.

Although some stores with a history of high bruising have reduced the number of layers of fruit on display and had an associated reduction in bruising, store monitoring metrics – including layers of fruit on display – have not shown a consistent relationship with bruising across the last six months and therefore do not provide a clear explanation for why bruising levels have remained lower over this period.

Figure 1. Unacceptably bruised Australian Hass each year of the project between January and June 2026

South Queensland and New South Wales maturity monitoring wraps up

The AV22011 wholesale maturity monitoring program continued through June, with 4 Hass samples collected from South Queensland and New South Wales. All samples reached the industry standard of minimum 23% dry matter, shown in Figure 2.

Maturity monitoring of South Queensland and New South Wales fruit will now cease due to fruit from these regions consistently meeting the minimum maturity standard.

Figure 2. Hass dry matter levels from fruit sampled from 16 June 2026

Well done to growers GJ & J O’Keefe, KMH Avocados, and Lister Farm whose fruit was sampled and exceeded the minimum maturity standard since 16 June 2026.

To give consumers the best eating experience, ensure that fruit you harvest meets the minimum dry matter standards of 21% for Shepard and 23% for Hass. Continue to monitor your dry matter levels as your harvest progresses.

More information on dry matter testing is available here (PDF)

For further information on retail and wholesale monitoring, contact Adam Goldwater from Applied Horticultural Research at adam.goldwater@ahr.com.au, or Anne Larard from Avocados Australia at idm@avocado.org.au.

Acknowledgement

The Monitoring Avocado Supply Chain Quality (AV22011) project has been funded by Hort Innovation, using the avocado research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

 

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This article appears as part of the 17 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Australian Hass remains high quality in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur

Weekly quality monitoring has continued in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong as part of the Avocado International Retail Quality Benchmarking project (AV24015).

Throughout June, Australian Hass avocados across Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur have demonstrated consistently high quality, with 95% of sampled fruit in Hong Kong (6 total samples) and 92% of sampled fruit in Kuala Lumpur (20 total samples) being acceptable (less than 10% internal defects) shown in Figure 1. These results match the Australian Hass quality seen in both cities in May and continue to exceed the industry target of 90% acceptable fruit.

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, rots and flesh discolouration were the only defects present at unacceptable levels (>10% damaged flesh), with both defects rendering nearly 2% of fruit unacceptable. Rots were the only form of flesh damage present at unacceptable levels in Hass exported from competitor countries. Peruvian fruit was the main competitor, with rots leading to nearly 7% of Peruvian fruit being rendered unacceptable. This difference in unacceptable rot levels between Australian and Peruvian fruit is likely due to the large difference in the age of fruit on the retail shelf. On average, Australian fruit was 30 days old compared to Peruvian fruit, which was 50 days old.

Kuala Lumpur

In Kuala Lumpur, bruising, rots, and flesh discolouration were present at unacceptable levels, with all three internal defects affecting roughly the same proportion of sampled fruit. No fruit exported from competitor countries was available on the displays of sampled stores in June.

Figure 1: Quality of Hass avocados at retail in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur. The number in brackets is the number of samples collected in June.

Quality monitoring will continue across Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, with four samples collected weekly from major retailers in each city. Project updates will be shared regularly through monthly Guacamole summaries and Talking Avocados articles, as well as at regional forums and webinars.

More information

For further details please contact Henry Hyde at henry.hyde@ahr.com.au or Adam Goldwater at adam.goldwater@ahr.com.au.

Acknowledgement

The Avocado International Retail Quality Benchmarking project (AV24015 has been funded by Hort Innovation, using the avocado research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

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This article appears as part of the 17 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Lunch & learn biosecurity webinar series tailored for avocado growers

Discover how exotic pests could enter Australia, their potential impact and what we can do to prevent them.

Come along to this special biosecurity 3-part webinar series. Can’t make it on the day? We’ll share the recordings here and upload them to the BPR Library under ‘Event Proceedings’.

The series

Webinar 1: Know your threats: high priority pests for the avocado industry – 21 July. Watch the recording here

Webinar 2: What’s the cost? Financial impacts of pest incursions and response funding – 25 August. Register here

Webinar 3: Preparing for the next incursion: lessons, support and planning – 15 September. Register here

Your hosts

We’re looking forward to delivering these webinars in partnership with Plant Health Australia as part of the Queensland Department of Primary Industries ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions.

See you online!

Acknowledgement

Delivered through the Industry Development and Extension project (AV23010), this webinar series is part of the Avocado Industry Biosecurity Strategy project (AV21002), funded by Hort Innovation using the avocado industry research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower- owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

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This article appears as part of the 17 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Leading chefs explore avocado’s versatility at Melbourne masterclass

On Tuesday 30 June, Australian Avocados hosted a chef masterclass at Marmelo in Melbourne, bringing together leading chefs to explore new ways to use avocados on foodservice menus. Through a curated avocado menu and interactive masterclass, the event connected chefs with growers and industry representatives while showcasing the versatility of Australian avocados.

55 leading chefs were welcomed to the event from across a mix of venues, including restaurants, cafes and Quick Service Restaurants, with high-profile names in the room.

Owner and head chef Ross Lusted curated a nine-course avocado menu that showcased avocado across inventive sweet and savoury formats.

Guests also took part in a hands-on masterclass with chef Ross, building their own beef tartare using avocado in place of egg yolk. Menu highlights included Picked and Shelled Spanner Crab with Avocado Petals, Buttermilk Cream and Tomburi; Wood Roasted Pork Rack with Grilled Avocado, Sesame Leaf, Escabeche and Saffron; and Whipped Avocado with White Chocolate Cream, Green Tea and Toasted Coconut Meringues for dessert.

The night also featured an interactive “smash or slice” spin on “heads or tails”, which tested guests’ knowledge on avocados and gave them the chance to hear insights straight from the orchard, bringing the farm to table story to life.

The curated avocado menu provided a strong demonstration of the versatility and value Australian avocados can add to foodservice menus.

Acknowledgements

The Avocados FY26 Foodservice Program Educational Masterclasses (AV25003) have been funded by Hort Innovation, using the research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government.

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Help shape the future of avocado rootstocks in Australia

Complete the rootstock survey today to help build a stronger evidence base for future avocado planting decisions and support more productive, resilient orchards across Australia.

Currently, Australia relies on a narrow range of rootstocks, with limited local evaluation.

Meanwhile, leading avocado industries overseas have developed elite clonal rootstocks that deliver improved productivity, resilience, and uniformity.

Access to many of these rootstocks in Australia is constrained by regulatory, licensing, and commercial barriers. There is also limited data on how these rootstocks perform in Australia.

Why rootstock matters

Rootstocks play a fundamental role in avocado production, influencing:

• tree vigour
• yield consistency
• tolerance to disease and environmental stress
• water-use efficiency
• overall orchard lifespan.

A new project to overcome Australia’s rootstock challenges

Avocado Rootstock Variety Access (AV25002) is a new two-year national project funded by Hort Innovation in partnership with Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Western Australia.

The project aims to strengthen the Australian avocado industry by expanding access to high-performing rootstocks suited to our diverse growing conditions.

What the project will deliver

The project will:

• identify and prioritise key rootstock traits for Australia’s diverse growing regions.
• build a domestic rootstock performance database
• review and assess global rootstock options
• shortlist promising rootstocks for Australian conditions.
• develop pathways to access materials for future evaluation

The benefits for growers

The project will give growers:

• more rootstock options suited to your region
• an interactive decision-making tool matching rootstocks to climate and soil conditions
• improved confidence in planting decisions
• stronger, more resilient orchards
• improved yield, orchard health, and long-term profitability.

Your input is needed to build the rootstock database

The project will develop a comprehensive database of available avocado rootstocks, capturing their characteristics and performance across different growing regions.

Insights on rootstock use, performance, and experience across the industry is essential.

Complete the survey here to contribute your insights to this important initiative

Or scan the QR code:

 

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

New national pollination report and consultation now open

Australia’s first Pollination Security Status Report 2026 has been released, providing a national assessment of pollination security across agriculture, ecosystems, biodiversity and socio-cultural values.

The report establishes a baseline for how Australia’s pollination system is changing over time, drawing on new modelling, economic analysis and industry data.

Key findings

• Threats to pollination include habitat loss, climate change, land use change, pests and diseases, severe weather events, altered flowering patterns and other environmental stressors. These are compounded by structural pressures within the commercial beekeeping industry, including labour shortages, an ageing workforce, rising biosecurity requirements, imported adulterated honey and increasing varroa management costs.
• New modelling suggests Australia’s pollination system could face a potential shortfall of approximately 290,000 commercial honey bee hives during peak pollination periods under most likely future scenarios.
• Pollination security affects more than agriculture. It underpins food production, biodiversity, ecosystems and socio-cultural values.
• Pollination plays a vital role throughout Australia, supporting communities, diets, cultural practices, ecotourism and natural landscapes. It underpins everyday life in ways that are often unseen, yet essential. Many of these realities are difficult to quantify and are often undervalued.
• Australia lacks coordinated national monitoring systems for pollinators and pollination services. Significant knowledge gaps remain around feral honey bees, native pollinators and the broader impacts of pollinator decline.

What’s next?

The report will now inform the development of the Australian Pollination Strategy, which is entering its national consultation phase.

You’re invited to contribute

The Australian Pollination Strategy team is inviting input from everyone involved in pollination to help test findings, identify gaps and shape future priorities.

Read the report and contribute here

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

APVMA decision on paraquat and diquat

The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) released its final decision on paraquat and diquat on 23 June, following a comprehensive 30-year review by the independent regulator.

The decision confirms that products containing paraquat and diquat will remain approved for use, subject to significant new restrictions on application rates and permitted uses.

New registration conditions will apply to the labels of all paraquat and diquat products manufactured from 23 June, while existing stock will be phased out during a two-year transition period. This transition period provides an important opportunity for industry to prepare for the new restrictions and the implementation of updated occupational health and safety measures.

Melons Australia will work closely with affected businesses, registrants and other stakeholders to determine where the lower application rates can continue to be used effectively and to identify alternatives where gaps arise.

The full decision can be found here final decision regarding paraquat and diquat.

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

A message from Bridie

Dear growers,

I wanted to let you know that I will be stepping away from my role and commencing extended leave from 7 July.

I have really valued working with so many of you over the past eight and a half years. I have learned a great deal from growers across the regions and have appreciated the relationships built throughout that time.

Thanks again, and I wish you, your businesses and the industry all the best.

Warm regards,
Bridie

Senior Development Horticulturist
Project Lead for the Avocado Industry Development and Extension Project (AV23010)

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.

Applications are open for the Australia Grower Study Tour USA – closing 10 July

The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA), together with Hort Innovation, is accepting applications for the inaugural Australian Grower Study Tour headed to Florida in October. Applications close 10 July 2026.

The Global Grower Leaders Program will strengthen leadership capability within Australian horticulture through structured international industry engagement at the Global Produce and Floral Show 2026.

The program will provide exposure to global innovation, emerging technologies, sustainability initiatives, retail environments, international supply chains, and industry mentors.

Apply now

Key details

• Up to 10 Australian growers, places are limited
• Applications close 10 July 2026
• Opportunity to visit the Global Produce & Floral Show
• Alumni of the IFPA A-NZ Produce Executive Program (PEP) and/or levy funded growers will be considered favourably
• Recipients notified end of July

Visit the IFPA website for more information and to apply

Want to learn more? Come along to the webinar

Thinking about applying for the IFPA Australian Grower Study Tour to the USA?
Join Belinda Wilson, Managing Director IFPA A-NZ, and Tom McCue, R&D Manager, Hort Innovation for a short, informative webinar designed to give you everything you need to know before applications close on 10 July.

Whether you’re considering applying or sharing the opportunity with others, this session will provide a clear overview of the program and what’s involved.

If you can’t attend, don’t worry – we will be recording it, so make sure you register to receive the video post-session.

Webinar details

Date: Wednesday 8 July 2026
Time: 12.00pm – 12.30pm (AEST)
Registration: Free

Register for the webinar here

 

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This article appears as part of the 3 July 2026 issue of Guacamole, our e-Newsletter.