Mission Produce ready for the big game
Mission Produce ready for the big game
The Super Bowl, which takes place on Feb. 8 in Santa Clara, CA, is the single largest avocado consumption event of the year. In fact, the seven days leading up to the big game in 2025 ranked among the strongest avocado sales weeks on record, with retail volume reaching 34.5 million pounds.
Needless to say, Mission Produce, a year-round supply of the World’s Finest Avocados, is ready for this year’s matchup.
“While the big game is already a highly mature consumption moment, we still saw a 2 percent year-over-year increase during this key week in 2025 — representing solid growth for an event that already captures broad household participation,” said Galen Johnson, senior director of sales for the Oxnard, CA-based company. “More broadly, avocado volume has been up roughly 10 percent in recent weeks, supported by ample supply and attractive pricing, and if those trends continue, we expect demand for the big game to remain strong again in 2026.”
On average, avocado volume lifts about 25 percent during the week of the big game compared to the prior week, so Mission Produce is preparing for peak demand well in advance by aligning supply, ripening programs and logistics.
“More than 80 percent of shoppers buy their avocados within two days of the big game, so merchandising ripe-and-ready avocados is a must,” Johnson said. “Mission’s integrated supply chain and custom ripening programs help retailers execute with confidence during this high-demand window.”
Ripeness has become an increasingly important factor in big game merchandising, with Mission Produce data showing at least half of shoppers buying avocados within one day of the event, so getting the ripeness right is key to maximizing sales during the year’s strongest demand period.
“At Mission Produce, we ripen avocados expertly to stage to deliver fruit at peak quality, helping our retail partners make the most of every avocado event,” Johnson said. “We encourage retailers to think beyond a single display and focus on basket-building opportunities. Leading up to the big game, retailers can cross-promote avocados with affinity items, such as tomatoes, onions, citrus, tortilla chips, shredded cheese, ground beef, tortillas and sour cream.”
Additionally, she noted bags are a great way to bring value and convenience to shoppers ahead of the big game and Mission’s new avocado bags are designed to elevate the avocado shopping experience with bold graphics, shelf appeal, clearer labeling and recipe inspiration.
“Supporting successful big game promotions starts with insight-driven planning. Mission leverages AvoIntel to analyze historical trends, consumption levels, customer-specific data as well as weather and overall game-day momentum,” Johnson said. “From there, we align our sourcing, ripening and packing operations to ensure product availability matches promotional plans. By collaborating closely with retailers on inventory and timing, we help deliver supply reliability and strong sales during peak demand.”
Thanks to a diversified sourcing strategy, Mission Produce sources avocados from two or more origins year-round to deliver consistency and reliability.
“For the big game, our primary source is Mexico, where Mission is the number one exporter of avocados, supported by two packing houses and long-standing grower relationships across the country’s premium growing regions,” Johnson said. “This allows us to selectively source a plentiful supply of the World’s Finest Avocados during high-demand periods.”
With supply expected to remain strong in 2026, the priority for Mission Produce will be volume headed towards Super Bowl Sunday, expanding household penetration, increasing purchase frequency and fostering avocado loyalty.
