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Greetings from Fat Gold!
Below, you’ll find a special international edition of our newsletter. The main attraction is a report on the skyrocketing price of European olive oil. First, a few items of interest.
We’ve still got plenty of our Fat Gold Standard and the great combo pack with Fat Gold Blue, not to mention our two-ingredient lip balm, all waiting for you in the online shop:
These oils are newly-minted award winners—more on that below!
We never tire of talking about our favorite summer salad, the one that combines peaches and tomatoes. You wait for their seasons to overlap and POUNCE: procuring an equal number of each, slicing them into bite-sized chunks, adding a bit of torn-up mint or basil, even some red onion, and tossing everything in Fat Gold—no other dressing needed.
Here in California, that narrow seasonal overlap has just begun. It’s important to wait for the fresh, local tomatoes—beautiful peaches deserve better than the watery ones.
Here’s the salad we made last night, which we served alongside lamb chops, everything slathered in Fat Gold:
We’ve had many friends and customers ask: what the heck is going on with European olive oil prices? Over the past year or so, they have gone up, up, up… in some cases, more than doubling!
Here’s the story.
Since 2021, a few key olive oil-producing countries have been suffering from hot, dry weather. Their groves have produced fewer and poorer olives as a result.
For context, back in 2021, the most recent “normal” harvest, Europe produced around 2.2 million metric tons of olive oil. In the 2022 and 2023 harvests, that number was down to about 1.4 million.
Spain is really the driver of all this. Spanish production is down by almost half! It’s the largest olive oil producer in the world, by far, producing over half of the European total, so that shortfall affects supply and demand everywhere. (It’s not just Spain, though. Greece suffered a heat wave last year and its 2023 harvest was, likewise, nearly halved.)
All of this means steeply higher prices for European olive oil of all grades, from extra virgin all the way down to lampante. (You can always review those grades in our Guide to Extra Virgin Olive Oil. There’s a chart! It’s fun!)
Here’s a view of global olive oil prices since 2017, in U.S. dollars per metric ton:
This definitely makes California olive oil look more attractive, price-wise… but don’t presume that California will snatch up all the shelf space. Remember those production totals from Europe, counted in millions of metric tons?
California produces in the neighborhood of 15,000.
Nobody knows whether this hot weather is a passing phenomenon or the new normal in Southern Europe. All we can do is watch the groves for clues regarding the next harvest.
We sent a version of this market report to our annual subscribers, in the printed zine accompanying their most recent batch of oil. Those subscriptions are currently closed, as we’re almost exactly at capacity. But, don’t fear: we’ll open annual subscriptions ahead of the upcoming harvest, in late September or early October.
Recipients of these Field Reports—i.e., you—will be the first to hear about it.
Fat Gold just received some very cool recognition overseas. In Japan, there are two big olive oil competitions, and because we are mildly obsessed with getting distribution in that country, we entered both: Olive Japan and the Japan Olive Oil Prize.
In both, Fat Gold Standard won a gold medal, as well as Best of the U.S.A.! Fat Gold Blue also won a gold medal in both.
As you might guess, Japan is not a huge producer of olive oil, but there are a few notable regions. Kathryn has toured the most substantial, an island called Shodoshima.
Here is the island’s mascot, Olive Shimachan😗
That’s it for this Field Report! Whether you’re relaxing on distant shores or hanging out at home, we hope you’re enjoying the summer.
–Robin, Kathryn, and Bryan