Summary
Highlights
Avocado production in Portugal is consistently growing due to strong national and international demand. Kivili Life, initially focused on kiwi, has now invested in avocados in the central region, recognizing it as a crop with high demand, attractive margins, and accessibility for various farmers.
Kivili Life, founded in 2018, expanded from kiwi production to avocados due to rising global and local temperatures. Located in Arazede, they started avocado plantings in 2018 and harvested their first 100 tons in 2022. They now have about 120 associated producers, covering 200 hectares of avocado cultivation, aiming for 1000 tons in the next four years. Avocado cultivation is seen as a winning bet given the changing climate and excellent adaptation to the Portuguese coastal region.
Anabela Amador has been producing avocados for seven years on a 2-hectare plot in Aveiro. This crop has revitalized her land and provides significant income, supplementing her family's finances. Her produce is sold through the cooperative Kivili Life.
Inspire Farms, a large agricultural group in Algesur, has invested heavily in avocado cultivation, recognizing its high yield and excellent climate adaptation. They have 30 hectares of avocados planted in 2021 and have surpassed production forecasts, achieving over 3 tons per hectare in their second year.
Portugal offers ideal conditions for avocado cultivation, including a mild climate, suitable soils, and an organized producer network. Inspire Farms manages water resources through a dam, combining canal water and captured water. While public perception sometimes claims high water consumption, official data indicates avocados use similar amounts of water as citrus crops, making it a viable crop with sufficient water supply.
Avocado farming creates job opportunities, addressing agricultural seasonality. Inspire Farms primarily employs foreign workers, particularly from India, for harvesting. The harvesting process requires careful handling, cutting the fruit with shears while maintaining a 1cm peduncle to extend shelf life.
Inspire Farms commercializes its avocados through Trops, a transnational producer organization based in Tavira, with origins in Málaga. Trops specializes in avocados and mangoes, operating year-round by combining Peninsular Iberian production (October to May) with produce from South American growers. Trops supports farmers with information on sustainable production, quality control, and market needs, ensuring fair prices and maximizing profitability.
Avocado cultivation is considered a 'democratic' crop because it allows smaller plots to generate significant income, attracting young farmers and supplementing family incomes. The extended harvest campaign, from October to May, and the fact that avocados ripen post-harvest, allows for flexible market management and optimal pricing for farmers.
Luís Sabo, a young farmer, added avocado cultivation to his family business six years ago. He highlights the region's mild climate, good soil, and sufficient water as key factors for success. Avocado trees start producing fruits in their third year, reaching peak production by the fifth or sixth year. All his production is exported to Spain and France. He emphasizes the economic growth and motivation the avocado industry has brought to the region's agricultural sector.
Avocado has transitioned from an exotic curiosity to a strategic crop in Portugal. Its profitability, adaptability to climatic conditions, and responsiveness to market demand are strengthening agriculture's role in the economy and creating new development opportunities in rural areas. The avocado signifies that the rural world has a future and is ready to embrace it.