Jan. 31, 2014
Julie Butler
Olive oil production and exports are both back up in Spain, according to new figures for last October to December, the first quarter of the 2013/14 olive season.
Nearly 760,000 tons of olive oil had been produced by the end of December, already well above the full year total of 618,000 tons for 2012/13, when unfavorable weather took a heavy toll, but under the 844,000 tons produced in the first three months of 2011/12, which was an all-time high production year.
By the end of last December nearly 4 million tons of olives had been harvested and converted into olive oil with an average yield of 19.07 percent, two points down on last season, and carryover stocks stood at 720,900 tons, compared to 807,400 tons at the end of December 2012.
Jaén made a third of Spanish total to December
The region of Andalusia accounted for about 595,000 tons — or about 78 percent — of Spain’s total production to last December and within it, the province of Jaén alone delivered a third of the Spanish total, with just under 249,000 tons, followed by Córdoba with nearly 154,000 tons.
Record exports in first quarter
The first olive oil market report by Spain’s new Food Chain Information Agency (AICA for its initials in Spanish), also highlights that the 237,000 ton total in exports for October-December was a record, though the figure for December is still provisional.
AICA, into which the Spanish Olive Oil Agency (AAO) was subsumed, said the figure was a third higher than the same time last year and about a quarter up on the average for the previous four seasons.
Domestic sales are up two percent on the same period last season, though this was largely thanks to an above-average October. And imports totaled 21,000 tons, compared to 22,900 tons at the same time last season and 12,300 tons in 2011/12.
Table olives
Table olive production is up 14 percent on the same period last season based on a provisional total of 556,0480 tons at end December, but total sales were down a tenth on last season.
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