Climate change is impacting global food production systems, making the challenge of feeding the world’s growing population more difficult than ever before. The tropical fruit sector is particularly at risk from the negative impacts of climate change driven by rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and associated challenges such as water stress and increased pests and diseases. This poses significant risks for the long-term sustainability of production and trade of important tropical fruits including avocados. Recognizing these challenges, the Responsible Fruits Project has developed this technical guide on climate change adaptation for the avocado export industry. The guide is for producers and exporters of avocado who are interested in learning more about climate change in the context of their own business systems. It was developed through a consultative process with avocado companies and producer organizations participating in the Responsible Fruits Project. The purpose of this technical guide is to: • Provide up-to-date information on recent and predicted climate change effects and trends in key avocado producing and exporting countries. • Identify climate change risks and impacts on the production and trade of avocado. • Identify adaptation practices and recommendations that may help to address these risks, minimize negative impacts and build resilience. • Share good practices adopted by companies to address specific climate-related production risks in a sustainable manner. • Identify gaps in information, research and technical solutions needed to strengthen the availability and adoption of adaptation practices.

Climate change is impacting global food production systems, making the challenge of feeding the world’s growing population more difficult than ever before. The tropical fruit sector is particularly at risk from the negative impacts of climate change driven by rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and associated challenges such as water stress and increased pests and diseases. This poses significant risks for the long-term sustainability of production and trade of important tropical fruits including pineapple. Recognizing these challenges, the Responsible Fruits Project has developed this technical guide on climate change adaptation for the pineapple export industry. The guide is for producers and exporters of pineapple who are interested in learning more about climate change in the context of their own business systems. It was developed through a consultative process with pineapple companies and producer organizations participating in the Responsible Fruits Project. The purpose of this technical guide is to: • Provide up-to-date information on recent and predicted climate change effects and trends in key pineapple producing and exporting countries. • Identify climate change risks and impacts on the production and trade of pineapple. • Identify adaptation practices and recommendations that may help to address these risks, minimize negative impacts and build resilience. • Share good practices adopted by companies to address specific climate-related production risks in a sustainable manner. • Identify gaps in information, research and technical solutions needed to strengthen the availability and adoption of adaptation practices.

This guide aims to support growers and businesses operating in the global avocado industry in their efforts to implement responsible business conduct (RBC) practices to improve the sustainability of their operations. By committing to RBC and implementing due diligence processes, these businesses can avoid social conflicts and environmental damage, which will also help to minimize financial losses and maintain long-term profitability. Responsible business conduct helps to identify, prioritize and deal with problems as they arise, rather than waiting for them to grow bigger or be discovered by others. The purpose of this guide is to strengthen the capacity of avocado producing, packing and exporting businesses and associations, including small and medium-sized companies, to begin their RBC journey by implementing Step 2 of the due diligence process (i.e. identify and prioritize risks of negative impacts). The guide also discusses ways to address these risks to implement Step 3: Cease, remedy, prevent and/or mitigate risks. The guide builds on the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains and provides references to many other useful resources. It was developed by the Responsible Fruits Project with support from the Government of Germany.

This guide aims to support growers and businesses operating in the global pineapple industry in their efforts to implement responsible business conduct (RBC) practices to improve the sustainability of their operations. By committing to RBC and implementing due diligence processes, these businesses can avoid social conflicts and environmental damage, which will also help to minimize financial losses and maintain long-term profitability. Responsible business conduct helps to identify, prioritize and deal with problems as they arise, rather than waiting for them to grow bigger or be discovered by others. The purpose of this guide is to strengthen the capacity of pineapple producing, packing and exporting businesses and associations, including small and medium-sized companies, to begin their RBC journey by implementing Step 2 of the due diligence process (i.e. identify and prioritize risks of negative impacts). The guide also discusses ways to address these risks to implement Step 3: Cease, remedy, prevent and/or mitigate risks. The guide builds on the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains and provides references to many other useful resources. It was developed by the Responsible Fruits Project with support from the Government of Germany.

The project “Building responsible global value chains for the sustainable production and trade of tropical fruits” (the Responsible Fruits Project) supports avocado and pineapple industry actors to strengthen or establish risk-based due diligence systems with the aim of making their operations more sustainable and resilient to shocks. In 2021, a baseline survey was conducted targeting avocado and pineapple producers, packers and their organizations, and trade associations (collectively referred to as “companies” in this report for the sake of simplicity). In March 2024, a follow-up survey was undertaken with 44 avocado or pineapple companies who had actively participated in the Responsible Fruits Project. The objectives of the follow-up survey were to: 1. Update existing information on sustainability challenges faced by avocado and pineapple companies to understand if these challenges have changed, and if any progress has been made on addressing previously identified problems and risks; 2. Identify the extent to which project participants have been able to incorporate information and outputs from the project to support their business in a positive way; and 3. Find out if project participants are interested in establishing a multistakeholder initiative as a means of moving beyond the project in the future. This is the full report on the follow-up survey and an analysis of its results. A brief summary report is also available.

Food markets in 2019/20 are bracing for some additional uncertainties beyond their own fundamentals. A fast-changing trade environment and the rapid spread of African Swine Fever constitute important challenges to overcome. However, prospects point to generally well supplied markets, which is seen to contribute to a lower food import bill in 2019.

Despite increasing consumer demand and an imminent production surge in breadfruit, a number of barriers must be overcome in order to increase the market availability, distribution, and commercial competitiveness of breadfruit. Many growers have limited understanding of when a fruit is ready to harvest and how to best harvest and handle the fruit to ensure a high quality product is delivered to market. As with any perishable crop-producers must learn proper handling of breadfruit to optimize its value to consumers, and therefore its commercial value. Similarly, chefs and consumers also need essential information on handling and preparation of breadfruit. This comprehensive 36-page guide will help growers ensure that the existing and future breadfruit crop will be used on farm, in the marketplace, or in the consumer's kitchen. This second edition adds kitchen handling tips, nutritional information, and descriptions for three important breadfruit varieties.

Exotic Fruits Reference Guide is the ultimate, most complete reference work on exotic fruits from around the world. The book focuses on exotic fruit origin, botanical aspects, cultivation and harvest, physiology and biochemistry, chemical composition and nutritional value, including phenolics and antioxidant compounds. This guide is in four-color and contains images of the fruits, in addition to their regional names and geographical locations. Harvest and post-harvest conservation, as well as the potential for industrialization, are also presented as a way of stimulating interest in consumption and large scale production. - Covers exotic fruits found all over the world, described by a team of global contributors - Provides quick and easy access to botanical information, biochemistry, fruit processing and nutritional value - Features four-color images throughout for each fruit, along with its regional name and geographical location - Serves as a useful reference for researchers, industrial practitioners and students

Note for the electronic edition: This draft has been assembled from information prepared by authors from around the world. It has been submitted for editing and production by the USDA Agricultural Research Service Information Staff and should be cited as an electronic draft of a forthcoming publication. Because the 1986 edition is out of print, because we have added much new and updated information, and because the time to publication for so massive a project is still many months away, we are making this draft widely available for comment from industry stakeholders, as well as university research, teaching and extension staff.