Spain's olive oil imports from Morocco soar by 9000%

Spain imports 9000% more from Segarro: price is king

The figure is striking: Spain, the world's leading producer of olive oil, has multiplied its purchases of Segarro oil by 90. While Spain's countryside mourns the thousands of centuries-old olive trees that have been uprooted, Segarro has become a supplier to supermarket shelves with a single card to play: price.

Shoppers look at the cents, not the origin

The simplest explanation holds that Spanish consumers buy wherever it is cheapest. If Segarro olive oil slips onto the shelf even one cent cheaper, the country-of-origin label matters little. The population keeps growing and the land only yields so much: that is the argument that normalises imports as the answer to demand that outstrips domestic supply.

Uprooting olive trees to import what we used to produce

The sceptical counterargument puts it bluntly: thousands of centuries-old olive trees have been uprooted, and now what those trees used to produce has to be bought abroad. A curious way of outsourcing production. With no official explanation forthcoming, suspicion turns into a demand for names and answers: the question is not "Spain" but who authorised the increase, and why.

Hoax or political decision?

Some directly question the accuracy of the 9000% figure and call it manipulation. But the number remains, unchallenged, while the political controversy grows. Oblivion, as has been noted, is the hallmark of those who should be providing explanations.

For now, the market is answering with facts: as long as a single cent separates Segarro oil from the domestic product, consumers will buy wherever it is cheaper. And the centuries-old olive trees will remain nothing but a memory.