Avocado Production in Asia and the Pacific - United Nations in ...

AVOCADO PRODUCTION IN THE PHILIPPINES
Rachel C. Sotto *
1. INTRODUCTION
At the end of the nineteenth century, several plant species were introduced into the
Philippines. These came from different parts of the world and included fruits, vegetables and
medicinal plants. Some proved to be valuable and easily adapted to the Philippine conditions
while others were less promising and did not gain a wide acceptance among the populace.
One of the introductions which proved to be suitable to the Philippine soil and climatic
conditions was the avocado.
Known as 'aguacate' in Spanish and 'alligator pear', 'Palta pear', 'Midshipman’s butter'
and 'avocado' in English, it is called as 'abokado' in the Philippine vernacular. It was
introduced into the Philippines in 1890 by the Spaniards through seeds coming from Mexico.
However, it was only from 1902 to 1907 that avocado was introduced successfully into the
Philippines by the Americans. Through the Bureau of Agriculture (now the Bureau of Plant
Industry which is under the Department of Agriculture), planting materials were received
from Hawaii, Costa Rica and the United States. In 1913, the Bureau of Agriculture, together
with the College of Agriculture of the University of the Philippines Los Baños, started the
countrywide spreading of avocado trees. Now, avocados are found growing all over the
country, most of which are cultivated in backyards.
2. PRESENT SITUATION OF AVOCADO CULTIVATION
Crop statistics, compiled by the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics of the Department
of Agriculture showed that in 1990-1997 the Philippines had a total area of 4,753 hectares
planted with avocado (Table 1). Average annual production was estimated at 45,884 tonnes.
Leading producing regions of the country are the Cagayan Valley, Central Visayas, and
Southern Tagalog, while the leading producing provinces are Bohol, located in Central
Visayas, and Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino and Cagayan which are located in the
Cagayan Valley. In terms of area planted with avocado, Bicol is the leading region, followed
by Cagayan Valley and Southern Luzon. Most regions of the country, however, have low
productivity since avocado is grown mostly as a backyard tree or as a component of a mixed
orchard with little or no care at all.
In the Philippines, two distinct types of avocado exist, namely the green-fruited and
the purple-fruited types. In other countries and notably in the USA, the green-fruited
varieties are preferred. In the Philippines, however, the purple-fruited varieties are preferred
by the consumers.
* University Researcher and Project Leader, Institute of Plant Breeding, University of the Philippines Los
Banos, College, Laguna, Philippines.
39