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Introducing Ecovado: an eco-friendly avocado

Words by Smiley Team

Avocados have become synonymous with trendy brunches or delightful Instagram posts.

But sadly, the humble fruit has quite an impact on the environment. Avocado production is energy intensive and resource intensive, and the demand for them is driving deforestation in some parts of the world.

This was a problem Arina Shokouhi, a multidisciplinary designer and maker, wanted to solve for her graduate showcase at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London (UAL).

Through her research, she found each avocado requires 320 litres of water to grow and harvest internationally, and also avocados are “one of the most unsustainable crops to export” because of their delicate, easy to bruise nature.

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So Arina, who is studying MA Material Future at Central Saint Martins, came up with the ecovado: an alternative to avocado that introduces people to “unfamiliar, yet more diverse, ingredient combinations”. 

“It was designed by identifying the chemical elements of avocados and the functionality of each molecule to try to find equivalents from more local and low-impact sources that do not rely on threatened crops,” she said.

“By formulating the recipe from local ingredients, the flavour varies across production locations. Therefore, this first recipe that uses widely produced British ingredients will taste different than an Ecovado created in another country.”

Arina says the ecovado is an imitation that tries to “improve upon reality, not merely reproduce it – and, hopefully, it will fool even the most sensitive of hipster tastebuds," she said. 

Inspired to act?

PLANET-FRIENDLY EATING: Find out the best diet for the planet in our Smiley Talk

SUPPORT: Support the Rainforest Trust, which aims to tackle deforestation across the globe

This article aligns with the following UN SDGs

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