Morocco's avocado exports expected to reach record numbers, as water scarcity concerns grow

Despite a significant drought, Moroccan exports of avocado “have every chance of reaching a new record” during the current agricultural season, says the specialized information site EastFruit.

According to the site, Morocco has exported between July 2022 and January 2023 more than 35,000 tons of avocados, a volume up 60% compared to the same period last season.

“Moroccan exporters have only 7,000 tons of avocados to export to exceed the total exports of the previous season. This goal should be easily achieved in the coming months,” said the site.

This increase is not really surprising, as Moroccan exports of avocados have almost doubled over the past five years, from about 22,500 tons in the 2017-2018 season, to 42,300 tons at the end of the 2021-2022 season.

This has enabled the Kingdom to become the 9th largest exporter of avocados in the world, gaining three places in the ranking, and to place this crop in the 8th category of Moroccan fruits and vegetables with the highest export earnings in 2021, bringing in nearly 90 million US dollars.

Morocco is ahead of countries in South America (Peru, Chile, Colombia), Europe (Netherlands, Spain) and Africa (Kenya, South Africa), while Mexico remains the undisputed leader, with an annual supply exceeding the million tons.

The rapid growth of Moroccan exports of avocado has been possible through the diversification of destinations conducted at a rapid pace.

During the 2017-2018 season, nearly 75% of exports had gone to Spain, whereas the proportion is only 39% during the 2021-2022 season, allowing  Morocco’s avocados to be directly exported to buyers in other countries instead of a Spain re-export pit-stop, says EastFruit.

Spain still remained the top importer of Moroccan avocados during the 2021-2022 season, followed by France, with a 26% share.

The Netherlands (19%), Germany (10%) and the United Kingdom (3%) follow in this ranking, which is completed by a number of small volume importing countries. The list includes Russia (600 tons), Switzerland (300 tons), Belgium (200 tons), Portugal (100 tons), as well as some Middle Eastern (300 tons) and African (200 tons) countries.

However, the cultivation of avocados has long been criticized in Morocco, given the fact that it involves a very large consumption of water, up to 800 liters of water per kilo.

Water scarcity and drought in Morocco has caused many to question the future of avocado cultivation in the kingdom,  considering that last year, authorities shrunk the acreage of avocado, watermelons and citrus fruits crops.

EastFruit points out that further expansion of avocado plantings and other categories of Moroccan horticultural exports appears to be threatened, “as growing them makes no sense with reduced access to water resources.”