Focus on Manatee: Port Manatee fuels healthy diets with millions of avocados a year

At a pace of 35 million a year, wholesome avocados are shipped from Port Manatee to health-conscious consumers throughout the U.S. Southeast and beyond, proving once again that Manatee County’s seaport not only fuels regional economic strength and motorists’ gas tanks but also energizes nourishing diets of millions of Americans and some Canadians as well.

Del Monte Fresh Produce Co.’s Manatee port manager, Denise Tuck, advises that the company, which is in its fourth decade of operations at Port Manatee, began bringing avocados into its Port Manatee distribution center in May, with the increasingly popular pear-shaped green fruit joining longtime imports of bananas, pineapples and melons.

Del Monte’s avocado imports into Port Manatee have begun with shipments from Mexico by Port Manatee-based World Direct Shipping, one of the world’s fastest-growing container lines, and the year-round supply into the Port Manatee distribution center is being ensured with additional avocados arriving in season from Chile and Peru via truck from South Florida’s Port Everglades.

According to Tuck’s calculations, Del Monte’s annualized flow through Port Manatee now includes 35 million avocados in addition to some 750 million bananas and more than 30 million pineapples. Del Monte has been so pleased with its longstanding relationship with Port Manatee that the Coral Gables-headquartered company in 2016 extended its agreement with the port through at least 2021, with options through 2036.

Del Monte’s program of weekly turnover of fresh produce typically calls for outbound shipment of product within four or five days of arrival. Avocados are trucked throughout the southeastern United States and to farther destinations, including sometimes as far north as Canada.

Nutrient-rich avocados, deliciously bursting with beneficial vitamins, minerals and monounsaturated fats, have become a staple of healthy diets, with the market for the fruit growing exponentially in recent years. At the same time, bananas – packed with potassium, protein and fiber – remain the most popular of all fruits among American consumers.

The addition of avocados to Port Manatee’s commodity roster further diversifies the business portfolio of the port, which in the 12 months ended Sept. 30 enjoyed the busiest fiscal year in its half-century history, handling products from granite and phosphates to lumber and wood pulp to such liquid bulk cargos as citrus juice concentrates and a broad spectrum of fuels. Nearly 475 million gallons of petroleum products moved through the port in fiscal 2019, abundantly supplying gas stations throughout the region.

In terms of contributions to overall regional socioeconomic well-being, Port Manatee’s impact transcends $2.3 billion a year, directly and indirectly supporting more than 24,000 jobs, all without levying of a penny of ad valorem taxes.

With the Thanksgiving holiday just behind us, we at Port Manatee remain highly appreciative of the opportunity to fruitfully contribute in so many ways to the health and wealth of Southwest Florida and beyond.

Carlos Buqueras is the executive director at Port Manatee and can be reached at cbuqueras@portmanatee.com.