Index Fresh ‘leans into’ GEM variety

As a longtime grower-packer-shipper of California avocados, Index Fresh has a full portfolio of the Hass variety with many different retail and foodservice offerings, but it has also made a concerted effort to be the leader with the new GEM variety.

That variety has been available commercially for more than a decade but a big push was made a handful of years ago as more and more growers have planted acreage to augment their Hass plantings. “Index Fresh leaned into the GEM variety early on,” said John Dmytriw, vice president of business development for the Bloomington, CA-based operation. “We were the first company to sell and market GEMS. And last year, we packed and shipped about 50 percent of the California GEMS that were sold.”

He added that the company does not see it as a “substitute” for Hass nor as a “lesser than” option. “We don’t think it’s going to replace the Hass but we think it is a very good variety and we want to let the fruit speak for itself.”

Growers have touted some of its cultural advantages such as being a taller, slimmer tree that allows for higher density plantings in the grove. It also is prone to set fruit on the outside of the tree, which allows for easier picking and potential labor savings. The fruit tends to mature a bit later and also skews toward the large end of the size curve.

Dmytriw said that makes it attractive to both retail customers and foodservice operators. He added that the gold speckled skin also makes for a very attractive retail display. “We aren’t saying its better than a Hass but it definitely has its own distinct advantages,” he said. “We offer it to our foodservice and retail customers just as we offer the Hass variety. And we let them choose, with many taking and promoting both varieties.”

He noted that Index Fresh does have GEM point of sale material as well as a GEM-variety specific bag that are available to retailers. “We can also offer a GEM bag is our private label program,” he said.

For the 2024 season, Index Fresh expects to begin its GEM packing and marketing April 1 with the its volume lasting eight to 12 weeks, depending on movement.

Speaking of the entire California avocado crop, Dmytriw said that Index Fresh will have slightly more fruit than last year even though the total crop is down a bit. He credited the company’s “wonderful field team” for doing an excellent job helping its growers produce a good crop and retaining its growers while also attracting new growers to their packing facilities. He added that many of their growers have younger trees, including the GEMS, which tend to outperform older trees in yield per tree.

Index Fresh began marketing California avocados in early March as Dmytriw revealed that the marketing conditions have been improving on a daily basis convincing more growers to get started on their harvest season. He did note that all the rain this year has “allowed us to slow roll the start of the season. The rain has stalled the harvest a bit which is helping the fruit size.” He said there is no urgency to pick the fruit so many growers are holding back and giving the trees the time to utilize the welcome rainwater to grow the individual avocados.“March will be a lower volume month and then we will see increased production in April moving toward the peak months of May, June and July when California will be promoting its crop,” he said.

Dmytrix said he has no crystal ball but he is optimistic that the peak of California season will be met with excellent demand for the fruit and a good marketing situation. He expects Peru to join the game in earnest in the summer with its abundance of large size fruit, which will help the marketing opportunities for all avocados. “I do expect that this will be a high demand summer for California avocados because we have a shorter crop, it will be eating very well and interest should run high. Everything we see points to a strong market for avocados. Avocados aren’t giving up any yardage as retailers love to promote them.” He added that Index Fresh is continually looking for more sustainable packaging options and it hopes to have some new options for retailers and foodservice operators to look at this year. “Everyone is looking for sustainable packaging that reduces the need for plastic,” he said. “That pursuit is also on the top of our list and we do expect to have some announcements in that area later in the season.”