According to the report, extreme temperatures are taking a toll on the olive oil industry around the Mediterranean region in Southern Europe. Notably, South European countries like Spain, Italy and Greece have been among the leading producers of olive oil. Europe experienced a bad olive harvest last year and the production may fall this year too.

The report highlights that high temperatures are a bane for the olive trees as in such conditions, they drop their fruit to save moisture or produce fruit at the cost of their health.

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Kyle Holland, who covers oils and oilseeds at market research group Mintec highlighted that the production of olive oil in Spain dropped to about 620,000 metric tons, compared to the five-year average of around 1.3 million metric tons. Thus, Spain which is the world’s biggest olive oil producer suffered more than 50% decline in the average production.

Zanre further informed that bulk prices for olive oil have doubled compared to the what it was last year.“There doesn’t seem to be any respite on the horizon,” Zanre said, adding “the industry is in crisis.”

A spokesperson of The International Olive Council said “we are facing a complex situation as a consequence of climate change.” Globally, olive oil production is predicted to drop 20% between October 2022 and September 2023, the spokesperson informed.