Holidays boost avocado retail sales

Overview of avocados in the U.S. market, complemented by charts from Agronometrics. Original published on April 4, 2024.

MISSION VIEJO, CA  –  (April 4, 2024) – U.S. shoppers embraced festive avocado dishes during the fourth quarter holidays as sales totaled 144.8 million units, generating $161.3 million in retail sales.

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve weeks generated higher avocado dollar sales compared to 2022, according to the recently released avocado sales recap from Hass Avocado Board (HAB).

Avocado volume and dollar sales during Christmas week grew +3%, adding +1.2 million units and +$1.3 million to the category. 

Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)

HAB is committed to equipping the entire industry for success and produces quarterly reports on holiday retail sales performance nationwide. These reports offer valuable insights for retailers, category managers, marketers, and industry leaders to optimize holiday promotions and identify avenues for enhancing avocado sales in the upcoming year.

The information below provides a snapshot of the volume and sales data. Key highlights from the report include: 

Halloween

• Avocado dollar sales reached $42.4M during the Halloween week, up +1% over last year. However, volume sales dropped -2%, reaching 36.9M units. 
• Total U.S. ASP was $1.15/unit, varying across the regions from $0.88/unit in South Central to $1.29/unit in the Northeast region. 
• Small (4046) avocados held nearly half of the unit share, growing +20% and contributing +3.0M units to the category. 

Thanksgiving 

• The Northeast region drove avocado dollar and unit growth rates, leading with a +13% dollar sales increase and an +8% unit growth rate during Thanksgiving week. 
• On average, retailers saw sales of $863 and 727 units sold per store during Thanksgiving week. Per-store unit sales were highest in the West, California, and Southeast regions.

Christmas

• Nationally, Christmas avocado dollar sales grew +3%, reaching $41.0M. Unit sales also increased to 37.1M units, a +3% increase over the prior year.
• Avocado volume grew across all regions during the 2023 Christmas week holiday, ranging from +1% in California to +8% in the Midsouth region.
• Volume growth during Christmas week was driven by small avocados (4046) adding +2.5M units to the category, an +18% increase over the prior year. Small avocados held the largest volume share at 44%, followed by bagged avocados at 26%. 

New Year’s Eve

• Retailers saw an average weekly volume of 937 units and $969 per store during the New Year’s holiday week. Per store dollar and unit sales were highest in the West, California, and Southeast regions. 
• Average sale price varied across the United States from $0.79/unit in the South Central region to a high of $1.27/unit in the Northeast region.

The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.

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