Olive oil continues its price rise and has become, on its own merits, the most exclusive product in the shopping basket in many homes in Spain. Its price does not stop rising and consumers know this well, as they already pay more than double what they did a year ago for a liter of increasingly better-known liquid gold. In just one year its cost has increased by up to 52.5%. It is the price that increases the most year-on-year after knowing the inflation data, which this month of August has risen to 2.6% due to fuel with food prices skyrocketing.
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) keeps many buyers awake at night as they see how with each passing day its price does not slow down in an escalation that already places many five-liter bottles beyond 50 euros. And there are many fears that in a few weeks this price will end up being a bargain like the 30 euros it was months ago since farmers in the sector do not cease to be alert.
Why has the price of olive oil increased?
The damage from the drought and high temperatures has taken its toll on the olive tree and leads to a panorama of additional tensions in the price of olive oil between now and the end of the year. The scarcity of the harvest added to prices never seen before do not seem to go hand in hand with the drop in consumption and although they assure that there will be no lack of supply, no one puts a ceiling on a price that leads the list of foods that have become most expensive in the last year according to data from the CPI statistics published this Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
The second food product in the shopping basket that has become more expensive in the last year has been sugar (42.5%), followed by rice (21.6%). Both can be considered basic in Spaniards’ purchases, like potatoes, whose price is already 18% more expensive than a year ago. Meat, for example, rose by 16.4%, with pork being the most ‘economical’ of them without escaping a rise of 15.6% in the last year.
Foods that increase their price in the supermarket
This being the case, making a potato omelet costs 52.5% more than a year ago. But not only does the preparation of the lunch menu become more expensive in this way. Desserts also skyrocket in prices. In fact, confectionery products are the fourth most expensive in the last year after registering an increase of 18.2%. Thus, he sold cake that was 42.5% more expensive than a year ago. Here the price of eggs, which affects both assumptions, also has a lot to do with it. Its price has increased by 12.3% in the last year.
In this way, making a potato omelette cost 52.5% more in August compared to the previous year due to the rise in olive oil, the 18% increase in the price of potatoes and the 12.3% increase. of the price of eggs. For its part, making a cake was 42.5% more expensive in August due to the increase in the price of sugar, the second product that increased its price the most in August, 12% more due to the increase in the price of butter, 12.3% more in the price of eggs, 30.9% more in the price of oils and fats, while flour and other cereals became more expensive by 0.7%. Breakfast also became more expensive this August, as a piece of toast with butter rose in price by 12%, due to the increase in butter and bread by 4.5%.
Alternatives to olive oil
If you want to avoid the expense of buying a bottle of olive oil, there are several options in the supermarket with which to replace the consumption of EVOO. The first option is high oleic sunflower oil, although nutritionally it is not the same as olive oil. Genetically modified seeds are obtained to improve their nutritional profile, especially in terms of fat content. It is composed of monounsaturated fats, which help control cholesterol levels and improve the cardiovascular profile. It can be used for both dressings and frying, since it has greater resistance to oxidation than other sunflower oils at high temperatures.
Other options available on supermarket shelves include olive pomace oil or soybean oil, both with lower prices than those currently marked by EVOO. This small change of product in the shopping basket can help the consumer save a few euros on food spending.
