Hass Avocado Board Launches Foodservice Marketing Program and Website

The Hass Avocado Board (HAB) announces the launch of its foodservice marketing program to further the health and wellness mission of its Love One Today campaign and to raise awareness about the nutritional benefits of including fresh avocados in healthier menu items. Starting with a sponsorship of the World of Healthy Flavors conference in January, 2016 will be an important year for the Hass Avocado Board foodservice program as it provides nutritional research education, innovative menu ideas, and connects with operators and professionals at a variety of industry events.

Coinciding with this announcement, the Hass Avocado Board unveiled a new foodservice website, designed to be the go-to platform for information regarding the nutritional benefits of avocados, inspiring fresh avocado usage on menus, and highlighting chefs who are already incorporating the fruit into healthier menu items. This new foodservice website will be a comprehensive tool for professionals, providing them with the resources needed to add the flavor and wholesome goodness of avocados to their menu offerings.

“We’re very excited about the launch of our foodservice program, which will work tirelessly to increase the presence of fresh avocados on menus in healthy, transformative ways,” says Emiliano Escobedo, executive director of the Hass Avocado Board. “We’ve always prided ourselves on providing professionals with the tools needed to ensure their customers are benefitting from the flavorful health benefits of fresh avocados, and the new website embodies that.”

To better assess the marketplace, HAB conducted a menu analysis to understand current incidence use and operator survey to gather professionals’ perceptions about avocado usage. Of those surveyed, two-thirds use more avocados now than they did two years ago and more than half expect to increase usage in the coming two years. On healthy menus, entrees represent the majority of menu incidences, but growth is strong in appetizers.

To further expand this trend, HAB plans to establish relationships with chefs who are highlighting avocados in healthy dishes rather than adding them as a supplementary background flavor. This includes executive chef Justin Morrow of Canyon Ranch, whose emphasis on fresh fruits and vegetables, including fresh Hass avocados, exemplifies the mission of HAB’s foodservice program.

“We see avocados as part of a healthful, balanced way to eat. When we use avocados, we really try to emphasize the fruit itself – meaning that we don’t hide it behind a lot of other ingredients,” says chef Morrow. “For example, we’ll top a black bean bowl with an avocado mash that just has a little bit of lime, onion, salt and pepper to enhance the natural flavor.”

Coupled with the Love One Today campaign, which encourages Americans to include fresh avocados in everyday healthy eating plans, the revitalized foodservice program will further the health and wellness mission of the Hass Avocado Board in order to ultimately lead to the growth of avocados as a nutritious menu item.