Kenya Leads as the Biggest Avocado Producer in Africa

Kenya is the top avocado producing country in Africa, accounting for 28 percent of the total production.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, the growth was attributed to increased accessibility to markets which in turn helped the country to overtake South Africa.

Rwanda controls 20 percent of the total Avocado produced in Africa as it takes the second position while South Africa comes in third with 14 percent.

Here is the list of the top ten Avocado producing Countries in Africa:

1. Kenya: 28%
2. Rwanda: 20%
3. South Africa:  14%
4. Cameroon:  8%
5. DRC: 8%
6. Ethiopia: 7%
7. Côte d’Ivoire: 4%
8. Morocco: 4%
9. Madagascar: 3%
10. Others: 4%

On worlds leading Avocado exporters by value, Mexico is ranked top in both production and export value. The total avocado production area in Mexico is around 415,520 acres, which produces 1.52 million metric tons every year.

According to Trade statistics from International Trade Centre (ITC), Kenya became the 8^th largest Avocado exporter in the world in 2017, exporting a record volume of 51, 507 tons to the world.

Avocados exports by country totaled US$6 billion in 2017. That dollar value reflects a 141.2 percent increase for all avocados shippers over the five-year period starting in 2013. Globally, the value of exported avocados appreciated over a third (34.2 percent) from 2016 to 2017.

Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of avocados during 2017.

1. Mexico: US$2.9 billion (48.5% of total exported avocados)
2. Netherlands: $803.6 million (13.4%)
3. Peru: $580.4 million (9.7%)
4. Chile: $457.5 million (7.6%)
5. Spain: $343 million (5.7%)
6. United States: $152.2 million (2.5%)
7. New Zealand: $86.5 million (1.4%)
8. Kenya: $78 million (1.3%)
9. France: $70.4 million (1.2%)
10. Israel: $64.6 million (1.1%)
11. South Africa: $64.1 million (1.1%)
12. Dominican Republic: $57.6 million (1%)
13. Colombia: $52.9 million (0.9%)
14. Morocco: $45.9 million (0.8%)
15. Belgium: $44.8 million (0.7%)