A few days ago, I got inspired by my own experience and realized that there are more products that could help save the overripe and “imperfect avocados” of my father’s business. Not just guac.

I ate my all-time favorite breakfast: avocado toast with scrambled eggs and a side of salad. That meal needed an avocado to be washed, sliced with a knife over a plate, scooped out with a spoon and mashed with a fork. It also required its half to be put in the fridge left to brown and mold in my unreliable dorm refrigerator. That process reminded me of why the last time I had this meal was last month. Some of you reading might be thinking I’m over exaggerating but convenience has truly become the number one requirement for most consumers nowadays and for good reason.

So, a new product idea for MOZO –  pre-packaged, pre peeled, pre-sliced and even pre-mashed avocados.

Then I started researching brands that have already done this. And I came across a french brand called Naked Avocado that was doing something interesting. It did pre packaged avocados with no preservatives using a technique called HPP or high pressure processing. And its machine can cost anywhere from $500,000 to more than $3 million per machine. The result is pre packaged avo that can last up to 1 month in the fridge. Obviously, we don’t have the capital to purchase a million dollar machine right now. So I started looking for alternatives. One was vacuum sealing and adding natural acids to preserve shelf life. This makes it last 10-14 days. But the issue for my father was that we really didn’t want to deal with having to restock shelves every week. But it’s a first step. Vacuum sealing machines cost between 2000 and 3000$, a fraction of the cost of an HPP machine. Another alternative, which I am avoiding at all costs, is using preservatives such as potassium sorbate that can make mashed avocado last up to a month unrefrigerated. No thanks.

Next steps:

I’m planning to reach out to Marceau Vidrequin, the CEO of Naked Avocado, to learn more about their journey, especially how they scaled and when HPP became viable for them. There’s a lot to learn from those who’ve already done it.

More updates to come as I get humbled by my father’s comments on the progress of the project. See ya!