Kenya’s horticulture regulator has extended the ban on exporting popular avocado kinds to foreign markets to prevent the harvesting of immature avocado crops.
Head of Horticultural Crops Directorate (HCD) Benjamin Tito said the ban on Fuerte and Hass varieties will continue indefinitely.
The ban was placed on November 15, 2021, with exceptions for exporters who specialize in the Jumbo type and those who harvest during the off-season.
Mr Tito stated, “Until further notice, the harvesting of Hass and Fuerte avocado cultivars will be halted.”
Exporters of the Jumbo variety, he said, who are still allowed to ship, will do so only by air, not by sea, with a single fruit weighing at least 184 grammes.
Dealers and companies with off-season crops shall request verification for inspection from HCD regional offices in writing within 24 hours, a requirement that has been in place since November 15 last year.
On January 18, a study of when the prohibition will be removed was done to determine the status of the crop. Exporters had forecasted that the export market would open next month, as has been tradition.
“The directorate has been closely monitoring harvest trends, patterns and undertaking surveys to authenticate the maturity indices of the avocado fruit in the major production zones. The recent survey indicated that the main season crop is still immature,” Mr Tito said.
The decision by the regulator is aimed at reducing the harvesting of immature crops, which has been common in the past due to traders picking young harvests to profit from high commodity prices on the international market.
Avocado has been a key contribution to the horticultural sector’s revenues, accounting for roughly half of all fruit returns.
Following the shipping of immature avocados to the Middle East in 2018, Kenya’s avocado market in the Middle East suffered a setback 2018.
In 2018, the price of avocado in Dubai fell by over half as a result of immature crop shipments, which lowered the value of the fruit in that market.
According to the HCD, the price of an avocado unit declined from 35 dirhams (Sh945) to 16 dirhams (Sh432) in that year.
The reduction was caused by unscrupulous businesspeople exporting immature avocados to Dubai in response to the rising demand for fruit on the global market.
