Cinco de Mayo provides a prime sales opportunity for fresh produce as the holiday celebrating Mexican heritage and culture sparks a surge in demand for items such as avocados, limes, tomatoes and hot peppers as consumers plan festive gatherings.
Retailers can maximize sales through eye-catching displays, themed promotions and cross-merchandising strategies.
Peak produce items
A Cinco de Mayo celebration wouldn't feel complete without avocados taking the lead. Avocados From Mexico suggests multiple recipes for consumers to get creative with avocados, not only as guacamole but also as a layered fiesta taco dip, in deviled eggs, as a skewer with mozzarella and tomatoes or even a dessert of lime meringue with avocado mascarpone cream.“Avocados play a big role in the lead up to Cinco de Mayo,” says Stephanie Bazan, senior vice president of commercial strategy and execution for Avocados From Mexico. “Per Numerator, the week during Cinco, fresh avocados are ranked No. 3 in total units after bananas and citrus fruits. When comparing the percent lift from the week prior to Cinco to the week of Cinco, fresh avocados are the top growing in absolute units and experience the highest percent change week over week.”
Meeting the increased demand is imperative, and this year looks to have an outstanding season. Naturipe Farms says this year's avocado season is shaping up to be one of the best yet, with a strong supply driven by the growing impact of maturing avocado trees in Colombia.
With Mexico providing year-round supply and Colombia complementing the seasonal transitions, hass avocados from both these points of origin result in a harmonious blend, according to the company. By using multiple growing regions, Naturipe says it can provide an abundant supply of avocados, meeting retailer demand for Cinco de Mayo and beyond.
When it comes to Cinco de Mayo promotions, consumers want avocados that are creamy, flavorful and perfectly ripe, whether it's a party-sized bowl of guacamole or fresh avocado slices topping a taco, says Andy Bruno, president of Naturipe Avocado Farms Division.
"Cinco de Mayo is all about bold flavors and fresh ingredients, and avocados are at the heart of that," he says. "We're seeing more people experiment beyond guacamole — adding avocados to margaritas, grilling them for smoky flavor or even incorporating them into desserts. It's great to see this versatile fruit take center stage for the holiday."
Bruno says Naturipe always sees a surge in sales leading up to the holiday.
“Consumers love this food-forward holiday, and they are looking for great-tasting products that are easy to open and serve," she says. "Our line of dips are delicious, convenient and offer consumers a variety of flavors, sizes and heat levels."
Robert Schueller, director of public relations for Melissa's Produce, says recipes are an effective driver during promotions.
“We find that Cinco de Mayo recipes have been an effective educational tool we offer to retailers next to displayed items," he says. "We have been celebrating this Cinco de Mayo program for over 30 years, as it's always been a driver in getting more Mexican Hispanic items around the peak of promotion time periods — like Lent, Easter, Cinco, Hispanic Heritage month, Mexican Independence Day — and, of course, the holidays from Thanksgiving to Christmas and New Year's.
“Retailers from last year say the signage and POS materials are driving their Hispanic category — up 20% to 30% — from the four weeks of promotion and display leading up to Cinco de Mayo, in which many are non-Hispanics and celebrating Hispanic food heritage at home," he adds.
In addition to avocados, Schueller mentions that Melissa's Produce sees a huge jump during this time in limes, key limes and avocado and in value-added items such as guacamole dip, salsa kits and tamale kits.
Schueller says, after avocados, other top produce items include jalapeño, serrano, anaheim, poblano, red fresno, habanero and yellow chili peppers, as well as popular vegetables such as jicama, tomatillos, chayote squash, cilantro, yuca root and aloe. For fruits, mango, papaya, cactus pears, plantains and more do well during this time period.
At Mission Produce, Cinco de Mayo is one of the top opportunities of the year to drive consumption of its avocados and mangoes, says Galen Johnson, senior director of sales.
"Consumers can go green and gold for Cinco with avocados and mangoes, the perfect pairing for a fiesta," he says. "Cinco is the time to be festive with flavor, so adding mango is a great way to elevate a classic dish."
Johnson highlights data from Circana showing 32.4 million pounds of avocados and 12.4 million pounds of mangoes were sold last year, generating a combined $99 million in sales for Cinco de Mayo. He says Numerator projects even more people plan to celebrate.
"At Mission, we're looking at double-digit lifts in volume sales for both avocados and mangoes for Cinco de Mayo," he says. "According to Circana, last year avocados saw an 18% volume lift and mangoes saw a 25% volume lift compared to the prior week. So, running promotions for the week leading up to Cinco de Mayo is key to driving more avocado and mango purchasing."
With Cinco de Mayo on a Monday this year, Mission Produce is looking at large orders for the full week leading up to the holiday, and many promotions are starting the Wednesday before, Johnson says.
"The industry expects avocado demand to be strong, especially on small sizes because of the attractive price point," he says. "California season is ramping up just in time for the holiday, so we're expecting a great supply of locally grown, high-quality avocados to support strong national demand. Several other origins will also be on the market, including Peru, Colombia and Mexico."
Johnson says Mission Produce is building custom ripe programs for its customers to meet the anticipated holiday demand with avocados and mangoes that are ripe and ready to eat.
"Over half of Cinco celebrators plan to dine out or order takeout this Cinco, according to Numerator, so we're supporting our foodservice customers with an ample supply of avocados and mangoes that are ripe and ready to slice, dice and mash," he says. "Promoting dishes that feature avocados and mangoes is a great way to get Cinco started."
Retail strategies
Eye-catching displays, cross-merchandising and themed promotions can help retailers can entice shoppers as they plan for festivities.“We have hundreds of retailers who participate in Melissa's Cinco de Mayo program, which entails signage around the theme of the celebration and the many essentials for their produce departments,” Schueller says.
Johnson says retailers can maximize sales with cross-promotions and themed displays to inspire avocado and mango recipes, such as mango guacamole and avocado mango salsa.
Avocados From Mexico creates custom store displays as well.
“Avocados From Mexico will be at the center of every good celebration as 'Guac Makes the Fiesta,'” Bazan says. “We have in-store displays and 360[-degree] support including social and digital efforts including a digital toolkit with Cinco-themed assets that retailers can leverage or utilize in their retail circular ads, social media, e-commerce and more. This year, Avocados From Mexico is also offering a Cinco thematic branded bag with a $1.50 cash-back rebate to encourage shoppers to buy multiples to prepare guacamole for their Cinco fiestas.”
Leading up to Cinco de Mayo, avocado shoppers spend 1.9-times more on groceries with avocados in the basket than without, she adds.
"We recommend retailers create a fiesta-themed destination complete with eye-catching displays, such as our molcajete-inspired display that can be utilized as a focal point to display avocados with complementary fresh items such as tomatoes, onions and limes, so shoppers can prepare for their at-home Cinco celebrations," Bazan says.
An Avocados From Mexico proprietary study indicates there is a 25% increase in unit sales when more avocados are merchandised in a branded Avocados From Mexico display on the produce floor, she says. "Leveraging the Avocados From Mexico branded merchandising displays can give every basket a boost during the second most important consumption period for avocados."
Murray says Yo Quiero's marketing strategy focuses on variety with its Ultimate Dip Destination offerings.
“We provide recipe and party ideas that allow consumers to create fun and festive Cinco de Mayo spreads. We really want consumers to enjoy their Cinco celebrations, not spend hours shopping and prepping for them," she says. "The Yo Quiero line of products ranges from guacamole to salsa to elote to bean dip and now to our new Creamy Jalapeño and Smokehouse Onion."
Murray says retailers also do well in creating displays that cross-merchandise items like fajita meat, dips, chips, beverages and more to provide convenience for Cinco de Mayo shopping.
"These festive displays increase sales, create excitement and give consumers a one-stop shop for all their party needs," she says.