Andalusian Olive Oil Exports Rebound After Challenging Harvest

Andalusian olive oil exports reached €852 mil­lion in the first four months of 2021, accord­ing to data col­lected by the Andalusian government’s office of exports and for­eign invest­ment (Extenda).

Representing an increase of 22.5 per­cent com­pared with the pre­vi­ous year, Andalusian pro­duc­ers are start­ing to reap the rewards of a chal­leng­ing crop year.

The autonomous com­mu­nity was ini­tially esti­mated to pro­duce almost 1.4 mil­lion tons, but this was reduced to 1.1 mil­lion after the hot and dry autumn fol­lowed by a record-break­ing cold win­ter took its toll on the groves.

Along with quan­tity, Extenda empha­sized that 63 per­cent of the olive oil exported in the first four months of 2021 cor­re­sponded with the ​“extra vir­gin” cat­e­gory, demon­strat­ing ​“the com­mit­ment of com­pa­nies in the sec­tor to launch abroad prod­ucts of the high­est qual­ity.”

In the first four months of 2021, 75 per­cent of all Spanish exports by value came from Andalusia.

“Olive oil is one of the main ambas­sadors of Andalusia in the world,” Arturo Bernal, the CEO of Extenda, said. ​“It is a prod­uct of excel­lence, with a con­sol­i­dated posi­tion abroad, which will again gain momen­tum in 2021, con­tribut­ing in an out­stand­ing way to the reac­ti­va­tion of Andalusian exports and recov­er­ing the path of growth.”

Partially buoyed by increas­ing ship­ments of olive oil abroad, Extenda reported that total exports in the first four months of 2021 from the autonomous com­mu­nity hit record highs in terms of total value and profit.

“[These fig­ures] are fur­ther proof of the strength of Andalusian agribusi­ness, a strate­gic sec­tor for Andalusia, which has once again recorded record fig­ures in this period,” Bernal said.

After a chal­leng­ing year marked by both cli­matic uncer­tain­ties and the Covid-19 pan­demic, data from Extenda showed that the olive oil sec­tor across the autonomous com­mu­nity had rebounded.

In the first four months of 2021, 392 com­pa­nies exported olive oil abroad, an increase of nearly 10 per­cent. Of these, 257 com­pa­nies have con­tin­u­ously exported olive oil for more than four years.

Furthermore, seven of Andalusia’s eight provinces expe­ri­enced sig­nif­i­cant growth in their olive oil sales in the first four months of the year, com­pared with the same period in 2021.

Seville saw the most sig­nif­i­cant increase in sales (in terms of value), while five total provinces expe­ri­enced dou­ble-digit sales growth, in terms of per­cent­age.

Cadíz was the only province that expe­ri­enced a decrease in sales in the first four months of 2021.

Andalusian exporters also con­sid­er­ably strength­ened their mar­ket posi­tions in six of the autonomous community’s top 10 olive oil trade part­ners. Exports to the top two des­ti­na­tions – Italy and the United States – increased sub­stan­tially.

The increase to the U.S. was espe­cially notable as it took place before the 25-per­cent tar­iff imposed on indi­vid­u­ally-pack­aged Spanish olive oil imports was sus­pended indef­i­nitely back in March.

Outside of Andalusia’s top 10 olive oil trad­ing part­ners, Extenda also noted that exports to Saudi Arabia, India and Ecuador enjoyed dou­ble-digit growth.

The news will come as a pleas­ant sur­prise to Spanish pro­duc­ers, many of whom had to search for new mar­kets after the U.S. tar­iffs led to sub­stan­tial declines in olive oil sales over the past year and a half.

• Extenda