To import Hass avocado from Kenya into Saudi Arabia or the UAE, plan around three things: the sea season that Kenya's regulator opens and closes each year, a written specification for class, count and dry matter, and the entry papers each country asks for. Kenya is already the largest origin in both markets. It supplied half of the UAE's avocado tonnage in 2023 and about half of Saudi Arabia's import value in 2024.

How much of the Gulf's avocado comes from Kenya?

Half of it in the UAE, measured by weight. The UAE imported 29,480 tonnes of avocado in 2023, worth 65.9 million US dollars, and 14,743 tonnes came from Kenya, according to customs data published in the World Bank's WITS database.

OriginTonnes into the UAE, 2023Share of weightImport value, million USDAverage value per kg, USD
Kenya14,74350%20.21.37
Mexico4,16914%19.54.67
Rwanda3,43612%8.12.37
Tanzania2,0117%3.61.81
Uganda1,8846%2.11.14
All origins29,480100%65.92.23
Source: World Bank WITS, UAE imports of avocados (HS 0804.40) by country, 2023. Value per kg is the import value divided by the weight.

Read the last column first. Kenyan fruit entered the UAE at an average declared value of 1.37 US dollars a kilo, against 4.67 for Mexican fruit. Kenya is the volume origin, and its price is the one the wholesale market measures other fruit against. A Kenyan programme wins on landed cost and on fruit that arrives sound.

Saudi Arabia shows the same picture a year later. Its avocado imports were worth 29.6 million US dollars in 2024, and Kenya supplied 14.6 million of that, about 11,100 tonnes.

When can Kenyan Hass ship by sea?

Only while Kenya's regulator has the sea season open, which in 2026 meant from 2 April. The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) closes harvesting for sea shipment when the main crop runs down, and reopens it when fruit in the main growing zones tests mature. An importer who plans from a seasonality chart alone can end up booking vessels that have nothing to load.

  • 25 October 2024: sea shipment closed for the 2024/2025 season.
  • 20 October 2025: sea shipment closed again, with air shipment still allowed under inspection.
  • Early March 2026: a field survey found too little mature fruit, and the closure was extended.
  • 2 April 2026: harvesting for sea shipment reopened. Packhouse inspection became mandatory from 7 April, and exporters must apply for it at least three days before shipment.

The crop explains the dates. Kenya's main season runs from March to August, with a smaller one from October to December. In the off season sea freight is prohibited and only air shipments move, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Our own Hass availability follows the same crop: by sea from March to October, with the peak from April to August, and always inside the dates the regulator sets.

The specification to write into the contract

Three lines decide how the fruit arrives: the class, the size and the dry matter. Dry matter is the share of the fruit that is not water. It is the accepted measure of maturity for avocado, because a Hass picked too early never ripens properly, however well it is shipped.

  • Dry matter. The UNECE standard for avocados sets a minimum of 21 percent for Hass and 20 percent for Fuerte. Kenya's export controls work to thresholds of 20 to 24 percent, depending on the variety. Ask for the test result for your own lot, not a general assurance.
  • Class. Name the class against a published standard, so that the tolerance is defined. Under the UNECE standard, Class I allows up to 10 percent of the fruit, by number or weight, to meet only Class II, and no more than 1 percent to fall below that or show decay.
  • Size. Avocado is sold by count, the number of fruit in a 4 kg carton. The UNECE size scale ties each count to a weight: 16 means fruit of 227 to 274 grams, 18 means 203 to 243 grams, 20 means 184 to 217 grams and 22 means 165 to 196 grams.
  • Packing. We pack counts 12 to 24 in 4 kg cartons and counts 26 to 30 in 10 kg plastic crates, as Grade 1, loaded at Mombasa. The customs code for avocado is HS 0804.40.

A contract that says only first grade Hass leaves all three lines open.

What papers do Saudi Arabia and the UAE ask for?

Both ask for a phytosanitary certificate from Kenya, and Saudi Arabia adds an import licence that the importer applies for electronically. A phytosanitary certificate is the official plant health document issued by the exporting country's authority. In Kenya that is the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service, known as KEPHIS.

In Saudi Arabia the importer applies electronically to the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture for a licence to import fresh fruit and vegetables, as the Kingdom's import licensing notice to the World Trade Organization states. The Saudi Food and Drug Authority's import conditions add that an official phytosanitary certificate from the competent authority of the exporting country must be provided for fresh fruit and vegetables.

In the UAE each consignment is inspected on arrival and released by the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment. Its release service asks for four documents.

  • A phytosanitary certificate issued by the competent authority of the exporting country.
  • A copy of the customs manifest, the bill of lading or the delivery authorisation.
  • A certificate of origin, if the phytosanitary certificate does not state the country of origin.
  • A list of contents or the invoice.

The ministry also requires fruit and vegetables to be within the pesticide residue limits the UAE has adopted, and asks some origins for an analysis certificate. The questions below cover what that means for Kenya.

Ports, routing and the cold chain

The fruit loads at Mombasa in a 40ft high cube reefer. For the UAE the gateway is Jebel Ali, where the ministry has an agricultural quarantine centre at the port. For Saudi Arabia, choose the port nearest your cold store: Jeddah Islamic Port or King Abdullah Port on the Red Sea, or King Abdulaziz Port in Dammam on the Gulf, which is the closer one for the Eastern Province and Riyadh.

We pre-cool avocado within four hours of harvest, ship it at 5 to 7 °C and place a data logger in every container, so the temperature record arrives with the fruit. For Jeddah, ask for the routing and the transit time in writing. The US Department of Agriculture names disruption in the Red Sea as one reason Kenya's avocado exports fell in 2025.

Delivery and payment terms

We quote FOB Mombasa, or CFR or CIF to your port, in full container loads only. On all three the risk passes to the buyer at the port of loading, so a CFR or CIF price pays for the voyage without carrying its risk for you. Payment is 50 percent by bank transfer on order confirmation and 50 percent against a copy of the bill of lading, or an irrevocable letter of credit at sight.

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum order for Kenyan Hass avocado?+
One full 40ft high cube reefer container. We do not ship part loads, which keeps the cold chain intact from the packhouse to your port. Hass and Fuerte can share a container in the months when both are in season, which lets a wholesaler test the two varieties with a single shipment.
Can I get Kenyan avocado by air when the sea season is closed?+
Yes. When Kenya closed sea shipment on 20 October 2025, the regulator kept air shipment open for Hass, Fuerte, Pinkerton and Jumbo, subject to inspection and traceability. Air freight costs far more per kilo than a reefer container, so it suits small, urgent volumes.
How do I check that the fruit was mature when it was picked?+
Ask for the dry matter test result for your lot before loading. The UNECE standard sets the minimum at 21 percent for Hass. On arrival, ripen a few sample fruit at room temperature. Mature Hass softens evenly and darkens, while immature fruit shrivels and stays rubbery.
Does the UAE ask for a pesticide residue certificate for Kenyan avocado?+
Not by name, as of October 2026. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment requires all fruit and vegetables to be within the residue limits the UAE has adopted, and it asks for an analysis certificate from the origins named in its circulars. Its service page currently names Jordan, Egypt, Oman, Lebanon and Turkey. Check the latest circular with your clearing agent before each season.

Ready to import Hass avocado from Kenya?

See the counts, packing and season for our Hass avocado, or send a request for quotation with your count, your port and your delivery term.

View Hass avocado specifications

Related guides

Sources