The Australian avocado industry has launched a virtual reality (VR) supply chain training program in partnership with Woolworths.

Funded by Hort Innovation, the Australian Avocado Industry Virtual Reality Training Program (AV24010) supports the industry’s push for more consistent avocado handling from orchard to retail shelf, helping strengthen consumer confidence and purchasing.

“As a retailer, we’re keen to support truly innovative approaches like this that can give our teams a ‘real world’ understanding of the horticultural supply chain, from orchard to store,” said Woolworths commercial director, Fresh, Louis Eggar. The aspiration is to train around 18,000 Woolworths fruit and vege managers and team members, while addressing workforce turnover and seasonal labour challenges.

Accessible via VR headsets, mobile devices, and tablets, the program simulates real-world supply chain environments to deliver scalable training for avocado farm staff, orchard managers, packhouse workers, and retail teams, embedding best-practice handling across every stage of the supply chain and supported by data analytics.

Hort Innovation CEO Brett Fitfield praised the efforts, saying: “This is another great example of innovation in collaboration, bringing growers, supply chain partners, including Woolworths, and technology together to invest in solutions for a shared challenge and lift industry performance.”

Avocados Australia CEO John Tyas also said the program marked a major shift in industry training.

“The industry welcomed the opportunity to partner with Woolworths on the retail modules, where handling and merchandising play a critical role in quality outcomes. We look forward to seeing the program’s long-term positive impacts on our industry,” he said.

The training program, launched this week at Avo Connections in Adelaide, is in its final stages of development. Picking and packing modules will be available from July 1, with Woolworths set to roll out the program across 1100 stores nationally.