The avocado is to be the star product at the 16th Fruit Attraction organised by IFEMA MADRID and FEPEX, taking place from 8 to 10 October at the Madrid trade fair centre. In this way, the trade fair will concentrate various initiatives around this superfood, whose success has grown notably in recent years both in terms of consumption and international trade.
In addition to the presentation of the Interprofessional Organisation of Avocado and Mango at Fruit Attraction, the day before the start of the fair, on Monday 7 October, the World Avocado Organization, Asociafruit -Spanish Association of Producers and Exporters of fruits, dried fruit, vegetables, flowers and plants of Andalusia-, Aecam -Association of Avocado and Mango Marketers- and Cooperativas Agro-Alimentarias will be holding the Global Avocado Congress, to help to continue positioning the avocado at an international level. In addition, during Fruit Attraction, this product will play a leading role in different activities organised by Asociafruit, Aecam and Cooperativas Agro-Alimentarias.
Among other activities, demonstrations will be held at Factoría Chef, led by Daniel del Toro, in which this product will be the main ingredient in different recipes. The guest chef will also be visiting the Fruit Attraction halls to invite visitors to take part in the Avocado Quiz. A digital brochure on the health benefits of avocados will also be produced. Visitors will also be able to enjoy the Avocatruck, a foodtruck located on the Central Avenue where showcooking sessions with innovative uses of avocados will take place and there will be free tastings every day during the trade fair opening hours.
On the other hand, during the month of September, “The avocado league” is being organised, with the participation of different hotel and catering schools from all over Spain, in which competitions will be held in which students will design recipes with avocado featuring as the main ingredient. The winners from each school will attend Fruit Attraction to compete in the final.
In recent years, according to the MAPA 2022 Yearbook, avocado cultivation in Spain has experienced notable success, moving from the traditional growing areas (Canary Islands, Costa Tropical of Malaga and Axarquía in Malaga) to other areas of the country in the provinces of Cádiz, Huelva, Alicante, Valencia and Castellón. In addition, cultivation experiments are being carried out in regions such as Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria.
Andalusia is the Spanish region that accounts for most of the national avocado production, around 75%, with Malaga and Granada being the provinces where the crop has traditionally been grown. However, it is currently expanding to provinces such as Cadiz, Huelva and Seville.
