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Date Published: 13/09/2023

Green gold crisis: olive oil prices go through the roof in Spain

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The cost of oil in supermarkets in Spain has more than doubled since 2021

Green gold crisis: olive oil prices go through the roof in Spain

Used as a salad dressing, for cooking and as a satisfying dip for bread, olive oil is a staple in most households in Spain, widely acknowledged for its versatility and numerous health benefits. But a recent surge in price means that many shoppers are having to forgo this favoured ingredient, as a litre of oil which this time last year cost just 5 euros has now skyrocketed to more than 9.

In Spanish supermarkets, the cost of olive oil has shot up by 52% in the last 12 months and the so-called ‘green gold’ has doubled in price since 2021. But with Spain being the world leader in oil production, how is it so much more expensive here than in the likes of neighbouring Portugal, France or Ireland?

How are olive oil prices behaving?

Badly, in terms of our pockets. The price of olive oil has been on the rise for 28 consecutive months now, with double-digit growth in the last 27 months. These staggering increases, according to University of Jaén professor Manuel Parras, are at least in part due to its unshakable popularity in Spanish households.

“If a faithful demand is combined with an enormous lack of production, what happens is that prices increase,” he explained.

But why is there an olive oil shortage in Spain?

In a nutshell: the weather. Between torrential storms, countless heatwaves and punishing drought, over the past three years production in Spain has dropped from an average annual yield of 1.4 million tonnes to just 663,000 tonnes during the 2022/2023 harvest.

Elena Sánchez, premium oil producer in La Alcarria, Guadalajara, said: “In these three years we have had Filomena, which destroyed the crops, and then two years with horrible heat in May that ruins the flowering, and it remains to be seen what the next campaign will be like, since if it doesn’t rain it will also be bad.”

So, who benefits from the crazy prices?

Sadly, struggling farmers aren’t reaping the rewards; although a litre of olive oil might be going for more than nine euros, their yield is way down, so it all balances out. A very few intensive farms can churn out the quantities needed to make a profit but on the whole, the experts agree that it’s in nobody’s interest for prices to continue spiralling.

Which supermarket is the cheapest?

Spanish consumer association Facua has revealed that the same one-litre bottle of extra virgin olive oil can cost up to 45% more depending on the store where it is purchased, which represents a difference of about four euros per litre. After analysing 50 brands in eight of the main supermarkets – Alcampo, Carrefour, Dia, Hipercor, Eroski, Mercadona, Aldi and Lidl – the experts found that the average cost of a litre of extra virgin olive oil is now 9.67 euros.

The greatest variation in prices between the same brand was found in a bottle of Carbonel, which ranges from 8.86 euros in Alcampo to 12.85 euros in Carrefour.

Image 1: Freepik

Image 2: COAG

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