Holiday avocado sales continued to grow as shoppers purchased a record number of fresh Hass avocados during the 2020 fall and winter holidays. The Hass Avocado Board’s recently published fourth-quarter holiday retail report indicates that Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Eve all reached record-high volume and drove a combined 187 million units in retail sales.
The holiday report provides information for retailers, category managers and industry leaders as they plan holiday promotions and look for opportunities for avocado sales growth in the upcoming year.
The information below provides a snapshot of key data points for each holiday:
Halloween
- Avocado sales reached a four-year high of $46.3M and 48.4M units;
- Nationally, avocado dollar sales increased +8 percent, while volume grew 21 percent vs. prior year;
- All eight regions in the U.S. grew in volume, and six of the eight regions grew in dollar sales, with Northeast at a national high dollar growth rate of 17 percent; and
- Average selling price/unit ranged from $1.19 in California to $0.71 in South Central, while average selling price decreased in all regions except California.
Thanksgiving
- Avocado unit sales reached a four-year high of 38.6M;
- Most regions saw a volume increase, while four regions experienced double-digit growth. Plains had the highest increase at 19 percent;
- On average, avocado retailers saw sales of 409 units and sales of $382 per store for the holiday week; and
- Average selling price/unit ranged from $0.66 in the South-Central region to a high of $1.22 in California.
Christmas
- Avocado unit sales reached 43.2M, a four-year high for the holiday;
- Nationally, volume increased 17 percent over the prior year;
- Dollar sales held strong at $39.5M with an average $418 per store during the holiday week;
- All eight regions saw volume growth, with Plains up 38 percent, which drove a total U.S. volume growth of 6.2M units; and
- Nationwide, average price for Christmas week decreased 15 percent to $0.91/unit. Average selling price ranged from $0.70/unit in South Central to $1.12/unit in the Northeast.
New Year’s Eve
- Avocado volume showed a unit increase of 35 percent vs. prior year bringing unit sales to 56.8M;
- Dollar sales increased by 19 percent, reaching $47.5M in dollar sales;
- Avocado retailers saw sales of 601 units and $503 per store during the holiday week;
- All eight regions showed dollar growth and double-digit volume growth; and
- Average sales price decreased 12 percent nationwide to $0.84/unit.
The Hass Avocado Board, based in Mission Viejo, California, releases a holiday recap each quarter, covering avocado sales trends for the corresponding holidays and events. The Hass Avocado Board offers these insights and detailed retail information as the only avocado organization that equips the entire industry for success, with clear and actionable data and metrics that all can use to drive their avocado business.
