The Peak: Olive Oil’s Most Expensive Moment
Every climb has a summit. For olive oil’s great price crisis, the peak came in January 2024, when extra virgin in the heart of Spain reached a number no one had ever seen.
What happened
In January 2024, extra virgin olive oil in Jaén — the world’s biggest olive region — hit a record of around €902 per 100 kg at origin, roughly triple its pre-crisis level. After two failed Spanish harvests, the market had simply run out of slack, and the price went vertical.
Why it matters
This was the apex of a decade-long climb that began with the 2014 collapse. From here the only way was, eventually, down — but in the meantime it meant the highest shelf prices in history and the worst shortage in living memory.
A price record is thrilling for a speculator and miserable for everyone else — shoppers priced out, fraudsters emboldened, even thieves stealing oil by the tankerload. Remember this number (€900+/100kg) when, a year later, the same oil crashed by half: it’s the clearest proof that wild swings serve no one. A fair, steady price is what the olive world actually needs.
Source, January 2024: origin price data for Jaén extra virgin (Pool Red / trade reporting).