We have been, for months, talking about the price of olive oil. It all comes from having had consecutive bad harvests that have caused such a Spanish and essential product to increase its price.
So much so that we have seen oils on the shelves that easily exceeded the price of 10 per liter, at least in the case of extra virgin olive oil. Become one of the workhorses of media, distributors, marketers and farmers, the price of olive oil has filled pages of all kinds.
And now, in a way, the waters are returning to their channel. Something we’ve talked about a lot in DAP in 2024, warning that this harvest will presumably It was going to be a good campaign.. Not acceptable, but not magnificent, but good.
We have had a hydrologically very powerful year in the main producing area, which is none other than Andalusia. And we have had a pleasant spring, which did not come with early heat waves that scorched the olive blossom and, consequently, prevented the fruit from appearing.
For this reason, the data from Pool Red, the organization that measures the rises and falls in the price at origin of olive oil, is giving some respite. Do consumers breathe? Well no, or not entirely, but it is true that except for brands that intend to maintain their margins or cover the prices of past, very demanding campaigns, prices are beginning to let up.
Finding extra virgin olive oil, even if it is white label, in the main supermarkets in Spain is now possible below seven and eight euros. However, for the drop in the price at origin to be passed on to the end customer, we will still have to wait a long time.
According to the outputs offered Pool Redwe already see how the farmer is selling oil at 4.1 euros per kilo in the case of extra virgin olive oil, falling slightly to 3.9 euros in the case of virgin and lampante standing at 3.6 euros, according to the weighted averages made at the outlets.
Why don’t we see the change in the end customer? Well, because packagers and distributors are also finishing release previous stocks and, above all, they are trying to minimize the damage to their cost structure caused by previous campaigns, where they have come to pay more than eight euros per kilo of oil at origin.
Now: is this good news? Well no, or not at all. Olive oil should not cost nine euros nor should it cost less than three. The production costs and margins of the oil must allow the farmer to live sustainably and for all levels of the chain to win, but not at the expense of others.
Concepts that we have told on several occasions in DAP and that it is advisable to refresh so that we are clear that oil is a product to which we should pay more attention if we want agricultural quality and justice.
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In DAP | Not all olive oils use it, but this symbol indicates that it is a quality oil