London – You may smash one on your toast in the morning. You may use one in your favourite dip. You may even use one as a hair mask. Now, it’s time to commute in one!
By mid-July, avocados will be taking over our capital’s roads, as the World Avocado Organization (WAO) unleashes its Avocado Fruit of Life-branded buses and black cabs on a grand tour of London.
The striking and unmistakeable transformation of our favourite British icons will be brightening up journeys for commuters and tourists alike with green goodness akin to the fruit itself and #AvoBus and #AvoCab hashtags for passengers to share photos of their Avo-travels on social media and enter an Instagram giveaway to win a gift card and bag themselves a summer’s supply of avocados by tagging @avocadofruitoflife and using #AvoBus or #AvoCab.
This first of its kind tactic follows the successful activation of the first pan-European marketing campaign for avocados including partnerships with Costco and Tesco in the UK; Carrefour, Monoprix, Lidl and Costco in France; Edeka in Germany; Bama in Norway; ICA in Sweden and Costco in Iceland. In addition the WAO has also launched dedicated social media channels for the UK’s favourite superfood on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest in three languages.
The non-profit organisation was launched last year by Peru, South Africa, Mexico and California origin suppliers in a bid to further educate consumers about avocados. Xavier Equihua, CEO of the World Avocado Organization (WAO) stated, “The UK has experienced an avocado craze in recent years and demand for them is growing on a daily basis. In 2016, Europeans ate more than 400 million kilos of avocados in 2016 and by 2017 we expect to see this increase to a whopping 480 million kilos – a 20% percent increase in just 12 months. We expect 2018 to be even greater with pan-European consumption growing to upwards of 500 million kilos. We want to fuel this demand and respond to UK consumers’ curiosity to learn more about the avocado’s versatility. I expect avocado demand to further grow by double digits in the UK and other European countries.”
London is one of the innovation hubs of avocados in Europe and the WAO is looking to drive awareness of the UK’s favourite superfood with new initiatives to become even more part of our everyday lives. The fruit of life’s rise in popular culture has been nothing short of remarkable in recent years, with everything from socks to pool inflatables being avo-fied; what better place to further its cultural relevance than London’s iconic buses and black cabs?
If you can’t wait to ride on the #AvoBus then you can pick one up on iconic routes travelling down High Street Kensington, through Victoria, across Oxford Street and venturing into the City of London. You’ve got two whole months to do some avocado cruising and take your avocado obsession one step further!
Across the pond, Avocados From Peru is also taking over the bus wraps of American cities, Baltimore, D.C. and Philadelphia.
For avocado inspiration for your plate, you can download the WAO’s free e-cookbook here: https://issuu.com/avocado-fruit-of-life/docs/avocado cookbook?e=29290771/47915401. It’s the first of its kind and offers loads of new recipes to try. Look out for information on the #AvoBus too!
And don’t forget to head over to the WAO social pages to get you’re your daily fix of avo-inspiration!
Facebook @avocadofruitoflife (facebook.com/avocadofruitoflife)
Instagram @avocadofruitoflife (instagram.com/avocadofruitoflife)
Twitter @avofruitoflife (twitter.com/avofruitoflife)
About the World Avocado Organization (WAO)
The World Avocado Organization’s (WAO) primary purpose is to promote and increase the consumption, awareness and value of avocados in international markets. It was established in February 2016 as an international non-profit organization. Based in Washington, D.C., the WAO represents some of the world’s largest avocado producers, exporters and importers, including Mexico, Peru, South Africa and the United States of America.
The EU, including the UK, is one of the fastest growing markets worldwide and already the second-largest market for imported avocados in the world. It is expected to grow by at least 15 percent per year in the next five years.
Source: World Avocado Organization (WAO)