Quality of Hawaii’s Avocados Moving towards import replacement Marisa Wall USDA, ARS, PBARC Ted Radovich, Marc Meisner, Glen Fukumoto – UH-CTAHR Ken Love – HTFG Francis Zee – USDA, ARS, PBARC

Avocados are nutrient-dense fruits: high in unsaturated fats, fiber, niacin, folate, lutein, potassium, iron, vitamins B6, C, E, K. Hawaii avocado cultivars are considered by many as gourmet fruit because of their nutty flavor and creamy texture.

Sharwil Kahaluu Malama Linda Local Hass A survey and taste test by Hawaii chefs identified five avocado cultivars with potential gourmet quality.

Avocado imports into Hawaii are increasing. Local avocados contribute ~30% of total demand. Supply of imported avocados into Hawaii has tripled. Imported avocados cost 3- 4 times more than local avocados.

Goals: Determine quality standards for Hawaii’s avocados. Replace imported avocados with Hawaii-grown fruit. Determine quality using objective analyses. Develop database of objective quality criteria that correlates with sensory quality and market appeal. Use quality criteria to evaluate and identify avocado germplasm with market potential.

Avocado Oil Content HDOA specifies minimum 12% oil content for "Hawaii Fancy" and "Hawaii No. l" grades. Avocado cultivars vary widely: 10% to >30% oil. Avocados harvested at 12% oil could be immature, with a watery taste and rubbery texture. Higher oil content generally correlated with higher edible quality. Measuring oil content requires laboratory analysis.

Predominant maturity index for avocado harvesting. Highly correlated to oil content. Cultivar-specific: CA – Hass (20.8%), MX – Hass (21.5%), CA- Fuerte (19%), NZ – (24%) Avocado Dry Matter Content

Percent dry matter is highly correlated to oil content. Mean dry matter = 34.2% Mean oil content = 22.3% Sharwil

Avocado fruit weight, dry matter, and oil content CultivarNAv. Fruit Wt (g)% Dry matter% Oil Content Sharwil d42.48 a27.92 a Kahaluu a39.22 b bc Shattauer c39.15 b23.75 b MNL d38.22 b23.97 b Hass - local f38.18 b cd Hass - import f34.38 c cd Green Gold f31.57 d19.80 d Penata b28.84 e16.80 e Malama b28.16 e13.55 f

MalamaKahaluuMNL

Sensory analysis: Hawaii’s avocados and imported Hass fruit

Sensory descriptors for avocado cultivars CultivarGreenWateryBlandNuttyCreamy Sharwil20%3%23%66%77% Shattauer8%0%23% 69%77% Green Gold45%20%25%50%60% Hass- import59%52%26%48%67% Shattauer HassSharwil

Avocado tasting by 35 culinary professionals CultivarTexture rating% Dry matter% Oil Content Sharwil9.02 a35.40 a25.42 a Green Gold 8.64 ab36.53 a a Serpa 7.09 cd35.76 a23.01 b Hass-local 8.34 ab bc22.43 b Linda6.19 d27.01 d c Nishikawa 7.65 cd cd c Egami6.29 d27.70 d18.36 c Ohata4.44 e23.55 e13.97 d Hass- import e12.49 d

Conclusions Opportunity exists to replace imported avocados with locally grown fruit. Consistent supply of high quality avocados is key to capturing market and consumer acceptance. Sharwil, Kahaluu, Shattauer, MNL, GreenGold cultivars had better quality than imported Hass fruit. Analysis will be expanded to more cultivars and greater fruit numbers in SEND FRUIT – GRADE A ONLY!!

Mahalo Sandra Silva Suzy Sanxter Andrea Lysy Kate Nishijima Julia Scholder Jenni Ueno Ted Radovich Ken Love Marc Meisner Glenn Fukumoto Francis Zee Hawaii’s Tropical Fruit Growers!