Mission Produce Becomes a First US Importer of Avocados from Jalisco, Mexico

OXNARD, Calif., July 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mission Produce, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVO) (“Mission” or the “Company”), a world leader in sourcing, producing, and distributing fresh Hass avocados with additional offerings in mangos, today announced it imported some of the first avocados to the U.S. from the Mexican state of Jalisco. The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) new certification of Jalisco avocados for the U.S. market provides Mission access to an additional supply source of premium fruit, supporting the Company in meeting strong domestic demand.

“We are pleased to expand on our longstanding partnerships with Jalisco growers to bring an enhanced supply of high-quality avocados to the U.S.,” said Keith Barnard, Senior Vice President of Sales and Sourcing at Mission. “Jalisco has supported our growing distribution in export markets since 2009, so we are in an optimal position to capitalize on the region’s access to the U.S. and strengthen supply consistency for our U.S. customer base.”

More than 600 orchards across 8,000 hectares of avocados in Jalisco were formally certified by the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). ₁ The Association of Exporting Producers of Aguacate de Jalisco (APEAJAL) anticipates growers to initially export three-to-five thousand tons of Hass avocados to the U.S. weekly. ₁ The majority of Mission’s avocado imports from Jalisco will be routed through the Company’s mega distribution center in Laredo, Texas, to the rest of Mission’s domestic network.

“Fruit from Jalisco is of superb quality – the region is home to highly skilled growers, professionally managed farms and high-producing trees,” said Rigo Perez, Director of Mexico Sourcing. “Additionally, Jalisco’s Mendez and Hass crops extend the season of avocados available to the U.S. by about six-to-eight weeks, so we look forward to leveraging the additional volume to complement our existing sourcing strategy in Michoacán.”

“After sourcing fruit from Jalisco for decades, we’re thrilled to be one of the first to introduce this premium product to the U.S. market,” Barnard said. “Avocados have become a staple of the U.S. diet, so increasing available supply supports further category growth.”

End Notes

1. “Mexican avocados from Jalisco allowed into U.S.” Produce Blue Book. July 18, 2022. Available at https://www.producebluebook.com/2022/07/18/mexican-avocados-from-jalisco-allowed-into-u-s/#.

About Mission Produce, Inc.:

Mission Produce is a global leader in the worldwide avocado business. Since 1983, Mission Produce has been sourcing, producing and distributing fresh Hass avocados, and as of 2021, fresh mangos, to retail, wholesale and foodservice customers in over 25 countries. The vertically integrated Company owns and operates four state-of-the-art packing facilities in key growing locations globally, including California, Mexico and Peru and has additional sourcing capabilities in Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Brazil, Ecuador, South Africa and more, which allow the Company to provide a year-round supply of premium fruit. Mission’s global distribution network includes 12 forward distribution centers that are strategically positioned in key markets throughout North America, China and Europe, offering value-added services such as ripening, bagging, custom packing and logistical management. For more information, please visit www.missionproduce.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release that are not historical in nature are forward-looking statements that, within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Words such as "may", "will", "expect", "intend", "plan", "believe", "seek", "could", "estimate", "judgment", "targeting", "should", "anticipate", "goal" and variations of these words and similar expressions, are also intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this press release address a variety of subjects, including statements about our short-term and long-term assumptions, goals and targets. Many of these assumptions relate to matters that are beyond our control and changing rapidly. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurances that our expectations will be attained. Readers are cautioned that actual results could differ materially from those implied by such forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, including: limitations regarding the supply of avocados, either through purchasing or growing; the loss of one or more of our largest customers or a reduction in the level of purchases by customers; doing business internationally, including Mexican and Peruvian economic, political and/or societal conditions; fluctuations in market prices of avocados; increasing competition; inherent farming risks; variations in operating results due to the seasonality of the business; general economic conditions; the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, including resulting economic conditions; inflationary pressures and increases in costs of commodities or other products used in our business; food safety events and recalls of our products; changes to USDA and FDA regulations, U.S. trade policy, and/or tariff and import/export regulations; restrictions due to health and safety laws; significant costs associated with compliance with environmental laws and regulations; acquisitions of other businesses; the ability of our infrastructure to handle our business needs; supply chain optimization failures or disruptions; disruption to the supply of reliable and cost-effective transportation; failure to recruit and retain key personnel and an adequate labor supply and lack of good employee relations; information system security risks, data protection breaches and systems integration issues; changes in privacy and/or information security laws, policies and/or contractual arrangements; material litigation or adverse governmental actions; failure to maintain or protect our brand; changes in tax rates or international tax legislation; risks associated with our indebtedness; the viability of an active, liquid, and orderly market for our common stock; volatility in the trading price of our common stock; concentration of control in our executive officers, directors and principal stockholders over matters submitted to stockholders for approval; limited sources of capital appreciation; significant costs associated with being a public company and the allocation of significant management resources thereto; reliance on analyst reports; failure to maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting; restrictions on takeover attempts in our charter documents and under Delaware law; the selection of Delaware as the exclusive forum for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders; the Russia/Ukraine conflict; and other risks and factors discussed from time to time in our Annual and Quarterly Reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You can obtain copies of our SEC filings on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Corporation does not intend to, nor does it assume any obligation to, update or supplement any forward-looking statements after the date hereof to reflect actual results or future events or circumstances.

Supplemental Materials

• Keith Barnard Headshot
• Rigo Perez Headshot
• Mission Produce Avocado Seasonality Chart

Contact

Investor Relations
ICR
Jeff Sonnek
646-277-1263
jeff.sonnek@icrinc.com

Media
Jenna Aguilera
Marketing and Communications Manager
Mission Produce, Inc.
press@missionproduce.com 

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3a4fd462-de01-45de-af6f-cb005a5c69b4