ISTANBUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd August, 2023) Turkey has suspended olive oil exports until November 1 due to the global price hike and because Spain and Italy process Turkish olive oil and sell it to third countries, the Turkish Trade Ministry said on Tuesday.
Citing International Olive Council (IOC) statistics, the ministry said global olive oil production decreased by 20% due to the drought in Europe, mainly in Italy and Spain, while it increased by 62% in Turkey. In addition, Turkish olive oil exports increased by 240% to 136,500 tonnes between November 2022 and July 2023, the ministry said.
Due to increased exports, the prices of olive oil in Turkey also increased by as much as 102%, the ministry said.
Turkey can only supply packaged and value-added olive oil to end consumers in EU member states in "very small quantities" because of high tariffs in the European Union, the ministry said. However, Italy and Spain process Turkish olive oil purchased in barrels in large quantities and then rebrand it and sell it to third countries, the ministry noted, adding that Turkey's exports of olive oil in barrels to Spain increased 21 times from November 2022 to July 2023 compared to the same period last year, and 44 times to Italy.
Therefore, after re-evaluating all the circumstances, the Turkish Trade Ministry decided to impose restrictive measures on olive oil exports in bottles as well as in barrels until the beginning of the next harvest season on November 1, 2023.
