Turkey’s olive oil sector enjoys boom in exports

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey’s olive oil exports reached 45,000 tons with a 446 percent increase between Nov 2012 and March compared to the previous period. Exports in March increased by 626 percent from the same month a year earlier.

Turkey’s olive oil exports have skyrocketed to over 45,000 tons, with a 446 percent rise in the last five months compared to the same period a year earlier. The rise is due to a considerable fall in the harvest of Spain, the world’s largest oil producer, according to a sector report.

Turkey’s olive oil exports, which had been halted considerably since the 2005-2006 season, started to recover last year, 2012-2013 season study report of the Aegean Olive and Olive Oil Exporters Union said. While exports increased to 20,000 tons in the 2011-2012 season, from 12,000 tons in the previous period, income from exports reached $65 million, with a 33 percent increase. 

The new season showed a more than 400 percent increase in both the amount of exports and the value. As the exports reached 45,524 tons with a 446 percent increase between November 2012 and March 2013 from the same period a year earlier, the exports value reached $143 million with a 406 percent increase. The exports in March soared by 626 percent on a year-on-year basis.

The report revealed that a 60 percent loss in Spain’s olive oil production because of lack of rain had boosted Turkey’s exports. The 95,000-ton olive oil production hike in Italy and Greece could not fill the gap in the market, and the European Union’s removal of the customs duty on Turkey’s olive oil exports also helped Turkey. Despite the recent fall, Spain remains the biggest olive oil producer in the world. The followers are Italy, Greece, Tunisia and Turkey.