Peru Avocado Counter-Seasonality: The May–September Window

Q: When does Peru fill the global avocado gap?

Peru ships Hass avocados mainly from May to September, peaking June to August. In the US this fills Mexico's seasonal low; in Europe it anchors a Southern-Hemisphere rotation alongside South Africa and Kenya that replaces the winter Northern-Hemisphere suppliers.

Q: Is Peru the second-largest avocado exporter?

Peru is the second-largest origin exporter of Hass avocados after Mexico. The Netherlands ranks high in some tables, but it has no production of its own and is a re-export and distribution hub, much of it receiving Peruvian fruit.

Q: Why do US avocado prices rise in summer?

Mexican volume reaches its annual low from roughly April to August, tightening US supply and lifting prices. Peru lands into exactly this higher-priced window, which is why summer is its key US opportunity.

Q: Does Peru compete with South Africa and Kenya?

In Europe, yes. Peru, South Africa and Kenya all ship through the Northern-Hemisphere summer, so the European summer is a Southern-Hemisphere cluster rather than a clean gap. In the US, Peru's main role is filling Mexico's low.

No single country grows Hass avocados all year. The global supply you see on shelves is a relay: as one origin winds down, another comes into season. Peru runs the May-to-September leg, and for buyers that window is the difference between a continuous program and an empty shelf. Here is how the relay works and where Peru fits.

The global Hass supply calendar

Read this as "who is shipping when." Mexico anchors the year; the Southern-Hemisphere origins, Peru chief among them, carry the middle of the calendar.

Approximate Hass supply by origin. P = peak, S = in season, blank = low or out. Directional, synthesized from market reporting.
Origin	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Mexico	P	P	P	S	S	S	S	S	P	P	P	P
Peru			S	S	P	P	P	P	S
Chile	S	S	S						S	P	P	S
Colombia	S	S	S						S	S	S	S
California			S	P	P	P	P	S
South Africa		S	P	P	P	P	P	P	S	S	S
Kenya			S	P	P	P	P	P	S	S	S	S
Spain / Morocco	P	P	S							S	P	P

The gap Peru fills

It looks different in the two big markets:

United States: a clean gap. Mexico, which supplies the overwhelming majority of US avocados, hits its annual low from about April to August. Peru lands straight into that hole. California overlaps but is small and domestic-only.
Europe: a rotation, not a hole. The winter Northern-Hemisphere suppliers, Spain, Morocco, Israel, Colombia and Chile, go out in summer, and a Southern-Hemisphere cluster of Peru, South Africa and Kenya takes over. Peru is the anchor of that cluster, but it shares the window rather than owning it.

Why a relay at all? Avocados only store for so long, even under a perfect cold chain. Year-round supply cannot come from one harvest held in a warehouse; it has to come from rotating origins as each one ripens. Counter-seasonality is that rotation.

Why it matters commercially

Continuity: a 52-week program is stitched together from origins. Miss the Peru leg and the summer goes uncovered.
Price: US prices typically rise April to August as Mexico declines, then ease September to February. Peruvian fruit arrives in the higher-priced window.
The hardest gap is spring. March to April, with Mexico winding down and the Southern Hemisphere not yet in volume, is when European supply tightens most. Peru's early arrivals help relieve it.
Proof it is real: in May 2026, major suppliers declared force majeure on tight Mexican supply, exactly the moment Peru's season ramps. Importers who had a Peru program kept shipping.

Peru's scale and position

Peru is the second-largest origin exporter of Hass after Mexico. (Some tables rank the Netherlands highly, but it grows nothing, it is a re-export hub that receives Peruvian and other fruit and redistributes it across Europe.) For 2026, Peru is projected to ship over 765,000 tonnes, up about 6%, with roughly 64% going to Europe, around 107,000 tonnes to the US and about 82,000 to Asia. In peak months, Peru can supply a large share of Europe's avocados. The destination split and caliber preferences are covered in our caliber guide.

EU versus US in the window

The two markets use Peru differently. In Europe, Peru is the anchor of a diversified summer rotation, and the bulk of its volume goes there. In the United States, Peru is the relief valve on a Mexico-dominated system, valuable precisely because it shows up when Mexico is short. For a buyer, the practical point is the same: the May-to-September window is when Peru is your most reliable Hass origin.

Frequently asked questions

When does Peru fill the global avocado gap?

Mainly May to September, peaking June to August. In the US it fills Mexico's low; in Europe it anchors a Southern-Hemisphere rotation with South Africa and Kenya.

Is Peru the second-largest avocado exporter?

Yes, the second-largest origin exporter after Mexico. The Netherlands ranks high in some tables but has no production, it is a re-export and distribution hub.

Why do US avocado prices rise in summer?

Mexican volume reaches its annual low from about April to August, tightening US supply and lifting prices, the window Peru lands into.

Does Peru compete with South Africa and Kenya?

In Europe, yes, all three ship through the Northern-Hemisphere summer. In the US, Peru's main role is filling Mexico's low.

Peru Avocado Counter-Seasonality: The May–September Window

The global Hass supply calendar

The gap Peru fills

Why it matters commercially

Peru's scale and position

EU versus US in the window

Frequently asked questions

When does Peru fill the global avocado gap?

Is Peru the second-largest avocado exporter?

Why do US avocado prices rise in summer?

Does Peru compete with South Africa and Kenya?

Need cover for the summer window?

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