I can’t eat olive oil, oh my god!

The fact that the Tariş Olive and Olive Oil Association today determined the purchase price of olive oil at 295 TL per kilogram brought to mind the question of what the retail prices will be.

After global olive oil prices hit a record high this year, prices also rose rapidly domestically; The price of 5 liters of extra virgin olive oil exceeded 1,000 lire per kilo.

Speaking to Sozcu.com.tr, the president of the National Olive and Olive Oil Council (UZZK), Dr. Mustafa Tan highlighted that the 2023-2024 season is a “null year” for olives.

According to Tan, this year the cost of olive harvesting increased by 100 percent compared to last year, reaching up to 35 TL; The production cost of a liter of quality extra virgin olive oil reached 400 lire this year.

The CEO of a brand known throughout the country recalled that to this are added the costs of packaging, labels, transportation and profit sharing, and stated that they estimate that a five-liter can of olive oil will cost at least 1,600 TL this year. .

GREAT DECREASE IN PRODUCTION: A YEAR OF LOSSES IN OLIVES

Dr. According to the information provided by Tan, the average olive production per tree decreased by 56 percent this year.

Stating that they estimate that the total quantity of olives obtained will decrease by 55 percent to 1 million 342 thousand tons, Tan said that they expect table olive production to decrease from 735 thousand tons to 443 thousand tons, with a decrease of 39 percent compared to last season.

According to UZZK estimates, olive oil production will decrease this year by 57.5 percent annually, to 180,000 tons.

COST DUE TO HARVEST ONLY 200 TL

Tan noted that the sharp increase in production costs will also be reflected in consumer prices: “The fact that most olives in Turkey are found in mountainous and rugged regions increases harvesting and labor costs. The cost of harvesting olives this year ranges between 15 and 35 lire. The cost of a liter of olive oil just for the harvest is 200 TL. Added to this is another 200 TL of other inputs. Therefore, taking these costs into account, it is not possible for a quality olive oil to cost less than 400 lire,” he stated.

THIS YEAR A FIVE LITER CAN WILL START FROM 1600 TL

On the other hand, the sharp drop in global olive oil production this year due to drought has caused Turkey’s exports to important producers such as Spain and Italy to skyrocket; This situation caused prices in the domestic market to skyrocket.

Erdal Tüfekçi, member of the board of directors of the Food Retailers Association, informed sozcu.com.tr about the price level in the summer months that the retail price of a liter of olive oil increased by 77.7 percent cent, from 90 liras to 160 liras in just two months.

Starting in November, the price of a liter of olive oil starts at 190 lira and exceeds 350 lira.

According to the general director of a brand known throughout the country to sozcu.com.tr, this year five-liter cans of olive oil will cost at least 1,600 Turkish lira.

IMITATION AND ADVERTISING WARNING

Dr. Tan, on the other hand, warned to be careful with lower-priced products after new crop products hit the shelves and continued as follows:

“Prices increase in line with rising costs. Prices lower than the cost of production are reminiscent of imitation and adulteration of food. Consumers can also buy these products, but those products have nothing to do with olive oil.”