Avocado best management practices and internet based information delivery

Abstract

Background

Australian avocado producers need to improve their yields and fruit quality and lower their costs of production in order to expand the market in Australia and compete with expected avocado imports from countries such as Chile, Mexico and Peru.

In 2010 when the project commenced there were no up-to-date production guidelines for Australian growers. The hardcopy Agrilink Avocado Information Kit published in 2001 was out-of-print and out-ofdate and the AVOMAN orchard management software was last updated in 2003.

The information and technology required to achieve higher yields and better fruit quality is available in Australia and has been successfully adopted by the most progressive growers. The objective of this project was to update and package the information so that it was easily accessed and understood by the majority of Australian avocado growers.

Project objectives

The project aimed to provide Australian growers with easy access to up-to-date information resources to assist with the production of higher yields of good quality avocados in a competitive and sustainable manner.

The project activities

The main activities of the project were to generate and provide growers easy access to various new information resources using a range of delivery mechanisms.