SlimCado Avocado Season Kicks off

Press Release
HOMESTEAD, Florida, May 19th, 2009

Just in time for summer’s salads, salsas, dips and spreads, SlimCado avocados are coming into season. With half the fat and one-third fewer calories,* SlimCados pack a lot of avocado into every health-conscious serving.

Brooks Tropicals, LLC, starts picking the early varieties at the end of May. Commercial volumes are expected by mid-June, with promotional volumes becoming available during July and August. Harvesting normally ends in January, with light volumes in February. Over sixty percent of Florida avocado’s retail sales are distributed by Brooks.

President Craig Wheeling estimates that “one million bushels of avocados will be harvested during the 2008-09 season. That’s approximately ten percent less than last year.”

Bill Brindle, vice president of sales for Brooks expects this season’s pricing to be slightly higher at the beginning, as the crop is expected to start off light. As the season progresses and volumes ratchet up as projected, he anticipates more typical pricing.

Brooks Tropicals strives to deliver SlimCado avocados at their freshest to their customers with the Continuous Cold Chain®, a process which cools the fruit down to its core immediately after picking. The fruit is kept cool throughout the packing and distribution process to ensure that the highest-quality fruit is being delivered to your store.

“This year’s looking good for Florida avocados,” said Brindle. “Marketing them as SlimCados not only grabs shoppers’ attention, but correctly positions this Florida avocado in the produce section as the health-conscious avocado choice.”

It’s been a great year for avocados as health professionals continue their recognition of avocados as having monounsaturated fat, which is considered “good fat.” With doctors recommending that fat, even good fat, should be eaten in moderation (up to 70 calories a day), avocado lovers double their health-conscious servings by eating SlimCados.

Mary Ostlund, director of marketing for Brooks Tropicals, notes that consumers are already asking for SlimCados. “Although it’s only out of season four months, to SlimCado aficionados it seems much longer.”

SlimCado avocados have gone beyond being just an essential ingredient in Latin cooking; this avocado has provided health-conscious inspiration for mainstream recipes from appetizers to salads to entrees. With Florida avocados coming into season, it will soon be the perfect time to enjoy this tasty domestic fruit at its freshest.

Florida avocados are grown commercially on about 6,500 acres, mainly in Miami-Dade County at the extreme southern end of the state. Florida’s avocado production normally accounts for 9 percent of U.S. avocado acreage.**

*Compared to the leading California avocado.
**Florida Department of Agriculture.
SlimCado is a registered trademark of Brooks Tropicals, LLC.