Calavo Growers is an avocado-focused produce company that sources avocados from independent growers across California, Mexico, Peru, and Colombia, then sorts, packs, ripens, and distributes them to retail grocers, club and mass-merchandise stores, foodservice operators, and wholesalers. Calavo also processes and packages guacamole under its own brand and private labels. The company operates two segments: Fresh, which covers avocados, tomatoes, and papayas; and Prepared, which covers guacamole and avocado pulp sold to retail and foodservice. In avocados, Calavo earns a spread between grower payments and customer receipts, net of packing, freight, and handling costs. A large portion of handling costs are fixed, so profitability is sensitive to annual crop volumes — larger crops reduce per-unit costs while smaller crops compress margins. For tomatoes, Calavo earns a commission on consignment sales rather than taking price risk. In the Prepared segment, Calavo produces guacamole primarily at its Uruapan, Mexico facility using ultra-high-pressure processing, a cold pasteurization method that eliminates bacteria without preservatives, enabling a clean-label product with an extended shelf life. In January 2026, Calavo entered into a merger agreement with Mission Produce, a direct competitor in avocado distribution, under which Calavo shareholders would receive $27.00 per share in a mix of Mission shares and cash, subject to shareholder approval and antitrust clearance.