Three new avocado varieties have landed on Australian shores that will provide consumers with more options.
Australia's largest grower of Kensington Pride mangoes, Manbulloo, has just signed the rights to three new avocado varieties that have come from New Zealand through its sister company, Manbulloo Fruit Company.
"Rather than stick with planting even more Hass, when there are some situations where there are just too many Hass around, we wanted to offer customers and consumers a new experience," Marie Piccone, owner and managing director of Manbulloo Fruit Company said.
"Now we've got material here in Australia we want to plant out commercially on a pilot basis, in various regions across Australia to assess the three different varieties."
Ms Piccone said with the huge proliferation of Hass all over the world, it was time consumers got more choice with varieties.
"We've identified that there is room for other varieties in the avocado industry" she said.
What type of avos?
Hoping to have avocado growers plant out trees this year, Ms Piccone said the varieties had a nutty, buttery flavour.
They are also "green skin" varieties, like Shepherd avocados, that do not go brown when cut.
"These varieties are very exciting because they're all the progeny of Sharwill, which was found in Australia in the 60s or 70s," she said.
"It never expanded commercially because it was what we call a B-type flower, which means that the flowering and the fruit set is temperature sensitive.
"These three new varieties, from all of our observation, appear to be A-type flowers, which means they're not temperature sensitive."
Are new varieties wanted?
With plans to commercially plant the three new varieties, are avocado options something consumers want?
"Our most popular food menu item would definitely be the avocado smash on sourdough, without a doubt," Kelly Behrens owner of Tobruk Kiosk on The Strand in Townsville said.
"Some days I sell out."
Choosing the Hass variety for its creaminess and consistency, Ms Behrens said only sometimes would she use the Shepherd variety.
But she was open to using a new variety.
"We're open to trying anything. If it's obviously going to be of the same quality and it's in season when the others aren't we will definitely try it," she said.
Despite an oversupply of Hass avocados to the market in recent seasons, Ms Piccone wanted to offer an alternative to the market that was seeking something new.
"I'm not suggesting that we're going to plant massive numbers of trees in the first instance," she said.
"But the research shows that lots of people are quite available to taste new flavours in avocados."
