Does olive oil grow or not grow in the world?
Leaving aside the data from the last two years, with the decline in production which has also significantly influenced consumption, the data say that average consumption is over 3 million tonnes, which has tripled in the last 30 years.
We could then sit back and sit on our laurels if it weren’t for an analysis by Juan Vilar that wakes us up from our torpor.
In the period 2010-2021, olive oil consumption grew by 11%, compared to +42% for vegetable oils. Vegetable oils have growth rates, therefore, four times higher than olive oils.
So far the absolute data which, however, is not sufficient without analyzing the dynamics of the world population in the same period. In 2010 it was just under 7 billion people, in 2021 it was almost 8 billion, up 17%.
In 2010, the overall per capita per person annual demand for oils and fats was 27 kilograms, however, in 2021 it was almost 33 kilograms, so for the period analyzed the net increase was 22%.
If we refer to theevolution of the demand for olive oils, in 2010 the per capita consumption was 413 grams, while in 2021 it was 400 grams, therefore, in per capita terms, there is a decline in the consumption of olive oils during these 11 years, by 3%.
Olive oil, therefore, is unable to keep up not only with seed oils but is also unable to win over consumers, through a growth in per capita consumption.
It is evident, therefore, that olive oil has not explored its potential in the slightest, instead focusing on consolidating positions rather than conquering new ones.
