Not only does the United Kingdom (UK) have great political and cultural influence but it also plays a great role in importing of avocados. As the UK is a very urbanized country, avocado is one of the top selling fruits. Around 84% of the inhabitants live in cities and towns with a larger number living in and around the capital, London.
The strong economic power of consumers in the UK has driven up demand for avocados. A growing interest in healthy eating is another factor keeping the demand up. Avocado consumption in the UK is at a good level and it is expected to do better in coming years.
Avocados are popular in the UK despite the logistical challenges that have come with leaving the European Union (EU). Although Brexit has resulted in the fruit costing more for consumers, sales are still strong. The UK is still seeing a sufficient supply to the domestic market.
With UK being one of the largest markets for avocado in the European region, they demand for imported avocados to be of high quality. Certification standards in the country are strict. The UK now maintains these standards alongside those from the EU.
UK Avocado Imports
Seeing that avocado production in the UK is non-existent, imported avocados can be found in the domestic market for a better part of the year. In 2023, the UK shipped in just above 120,000 tonnes of avocado. It is a slight increase of 4% from the previous year and another record high since 2019.
Over the past decade, avocado imports in the UK have recorded growth year after year. The highest jump in volume was recorded from 2014 to 2015 at 46%. The peak volume was in the year 2020 at 122,298 tonnes.
Here is the import volume of avocados in the UK between 2012 and 2023.
Importing Avocados to UK
Here is a step by step guide on how to import avocados in the UK:
Avocado Supplying Countries to the UK
The avocado import market in the UK is dominated by Peru. Kenya is among the top 10 suppliers. It has gained in market share from exporting avocados worth 935,000 US Dollars to reach about 4 million US Dollars. The UK avocado market is made up of a diversity of sources.
The other key avocado supplying countries to the UK are:
- Chile
- Israel
- South Africa
- Spain
- Colombia
It also imports avocado in small volumes from countries like:
- The Netherlands
- Dominican Republic
- Mexico
The UK brings avocado from abroad through its main commercial sea port. Avocados get into the country as sea freight by way of the Port of London. The sea port has a modern container terminal.
The other way avocados enter the UK is through its main airport. Avocados get into the country as air freight by way of the London Heathrow Airport. The airport has a cargo terminal and cold storage rooms to keep avocados fresh as they were when harvested.
How to Know Reliable Avocado Suppliers in the UK
Avocado importers in the UK must present the following documents for their shipment to be released by the customs office:
- Import permit
- Commercial invoice
- Packing list
- Bill of Lading or Airway Bill
- Phytosanitary Certificate
- Certificate of Origin
Sourcing Avocados from Kenya
Here are some advantages Kenya has in supplying avocados to the UK:
- It has a longer season that lasts from February to October.
- Production costs are low therefore avocados from Kenya are competitively priced.
- Most of Kenya is covered by a sub-tropical climate which ensures consistency of quality and supply.
Average Transit Time of Importing Avocados in the UK
| COUNTRY | AIR FREIGHT | SEA FREIGHT |
| Kenya | 9 hours | 29 days |
| Peru | 13 hours 10 minutes | 33 days |
| South Africa | 11 hours 45 minutes | 34 days |
Here is a top avocado exporter in Kenya.
Freshela Exporters
Freshela is a Kenyan based company that engages in the sourcing, processing and exporting of avocados and other fresh produce.
Freshela is a proud exporter of Kenyan avocados. Our avocados are organically grown in the most ideal climatic conditions in Kenya.
We source avocados from our company farms and partner farms. Our partner farmers are proud and happy working with us.
Our avocados are cultivated with uncompromising dedication to excellence and freshness. We guarantee optimum maturity of avocados.
We give competitive pricing to our customers.
We use a modern grading machine to achieve desired avocado weight. The fruit is also graded to eliminate any with physical quality defects.
We pack avocado fruit in 4kg cartons for both air and sea freights. We use dry wooden pallets to pack the cartons. Each pallet for sea freight takes 276 cartons while each pallet for air freight takes 144 cartons.
All of our avocado packing is approved by FDA and is certified by HACCP Quality Assurance.
The avocados in our pack house go through accurate machine selection. The avocados are classified according to dry meter, size, colour and external skin defects.
After packing, we pre-cool our avocados to 5°C in our cold rooms. This reduces field heat immediately after packing.
This process conserves the weight of our avocados preventing them from softening, water loss and wilting. Long shelf life is guaranteed because our avocados stay fresh throughout the supply chain. Our customers are happy because of the high quality of avocado we deliver.
The pre-cooling process is in preparation for shipping. We maintain the cold temperatures and achieve consistent preservation by loading close to the cold rooms.
Our trained staff properly seal the refrigerated containers. Our quality assurance team then confirms before the containers leave the pack house. The avocados are now ready for export.
We ship in controlled atmosphere (CA) refrigerated containers (reefer.)
By working directly with avocado growers and cooperatives, we are able to deliver our produce within a short lead time. We believe that growers grow and exporters export. That is how our growers are able to do what they do best and in return we guarantee superior, quality produce.