AVOCADOS ON THIEVES' MOST WANTED LIST; DEMAND PEAKS AROUND SUPER BOWL, CINCO DE MAYO.

Byline: Sonia Giordani Daily News Staff Writer

With the approach of Super Bowl Sunday - purportedly the biggest guacamole day of the year - party-throwers are scoping out the supermarket produce sections for the best Haas avocados they can find.

And ranch managers and sheriff's deputies are scoping out Ventura County's avocado fields, looking for suspects in the dozens of thefts of the flavorful fruit that have been reported in recent weeks.

``We've been hit several times already this year. Our problem is probably a little more pronounced because we're located so close to an urban area and offer easier access off the streets,'' said Terry Nelson, ranch manager of more than 200 acres of avocados in eastern Santa Paula.

Nelson said he and his crews patrol their groves more frequently and report each theft to the sheriff's Agricultural Crime Division.

Deputies arrested Geronimo Murillo, 52, of Santa Paula on Monday on suspicion of trying to make off with more than 70 pounds of Haas avocados from the Limoneira Co.'s Teague McKevitt Ranch.

The alleged crime doesn't amount to grand theft avocado, however, because the value of the stolen items was less than $1,000, police said. However, Capt. Bill Montijo said the suspect is linked to a theft in late December.

``This is the beginning of the new season really,'' Montijo said. ``We work with the farmers on a daily basis to do spot checks and surveillance.''

According to the California Avocado Commission, the stolen produce is usually transported and sold on the black market to fruit vendors and small restaurants throughout Southern California.

And as demand increases during peak selling times - including Cinco de Mayo and Super Bowl Sunday, when guacamole is a choice accompaniment to festive foods - so does the incidence of theft.

``Any time the prices are high, we see more theft,'' said Chris Dryden, a field representative with Mission Produce, a major packaging and marketing company for avocados in Ventura County.

``This year, because of the rains and the lack of crews and because the fruits didn't size up fast enough, they've been more than $1 per pound since December. That's pretty high.''

Last year, more than 320 million pounds of avocados were produced in the state of California, earning farmers more than $258 million in revenue. Ventura County's 14,753 acres of avocado groves are expected to produce an estimated 5,483 pounds per acre for the 1997-98 growing year.