Important lessons learned related to good agricultural practices
In 2023, the Colombian Hass avocado agribusiness achieved great lessons related to good agricultural practices and technical knowledge, despite the fact that the harvest season known as La Traviesa was delayed and the La Niña phenomenon did not let up. The end of the year was historic for the sector, reaching a record export of 5,125.5 40-foot containers (22 tons each), representing a growth of 26.4% compared to 2022, when 4,055 containers were shipped.
This achievement is largely due to the fact that the sector assumed these situations as opportunities for the different actors in its value chain to determine how to be more efficient, how to better differentiate Hass Origen Colombia and what is necessary to continue adapting the cultivation of this fruit to the soil of the Colombian tropics, where everything is changing and challenging.
“The achievement of this goal is very significant for our sector, because it not only represents benefits for the country’s economy, but also results in the welfare and improvement of the quality of life of producers and collaborators linked to the exporters. Therefore, with this achievement, we gain a boost focused on sustainability, from its three dimensions: social, economic and environmental” said Katheryn Mejía Vergel, executive director of Corpohass.
Achieving this goal is the result of the implementation of different strategies for the sustainable development of the sector, especially aimed at the formalization of rural employment, the protection and rational use of resources, and the positive impact on the country’s economic growth, among others.
This year the sector expects to grow approximately 20%, taking into account that, according to ICA data, there are currently 3,615 registered properties where Hass avocado is grown, representing approximately 33,500 hectares.
In this way, Corpohass will continue to focus on the transfer of knowledge and training, processes related to phytosanitary, productivity and quality of the fruit, and the opening of new markets, keeping open those that are currently open, more than 30 destinations in the world.
“We want our fruit to show the whole world that this orientation is not just a speech. Sustainability must be consolidated as the essence of our agribusiness and, therefore, is an added value and differentiator to bring Origin Colombia to more markets” said Mejía Vergel.
Thousands of families in Colombia’s seven main production areas depend on the development of this agribusiness: Antioquia, Risaralda, Caldas, Valle del Cauca, Huila, Tolima and Quindío. They work as a team to gain greater presence of Hass Origin Colombia in the U.S. and European markets, open new paths in Asia, explore new possibilities such as the processed product, and promote domestic consumption of the fruit, through education and alliances, an action that mainly benefits small producers.
