FACUA-Consumers in Action has exposed a concerning trend in the pricing of extra virgin olive oil, indicating that supermarkets are charging 2.57 euros more (before tax) per litre compared to the source. The average price of a litre of extra virgin olive oil in supermarkets has surged from 6.91 euros at the start of January to 10.34 euros at the beginning of September.
In response to these findings, FACUA has made it known that they will submit this report to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs. They intend to extend the complaint they filed last week against eight supermarket and hypermarket chains for inflating prices in food products affected by the reduced VAT rate. FACUA asserts that these increases impact 49% of prices.
This study analyzed prices on January 3 and 4, comparing them to those on September 4, at Alcampo, Carrefour, Dia, Eroski, Hipercor, and Mercadona.
42% RISE IN OLIVE OIL PRICES SO FAR IN 2023
Remarkably, Carrefour has seen the highest price increase in virgin and extra virgin olive oil among supermarkets, with an average of 47.0% across the 15 products analyzed. Alcampo follows closely behind with a 45.1% increase among the 15 oils considered in the analysis. Eroski exhibits an average increase of 41.9% across a sample of eight products, while Dia’s olive oil prices have risen by 40.8% since January among a selection of 14 olive oils.
There are only two supermarkets with increases below 40%: Hipercor, with 39.1% (a dozen products analyzed), and Mercadona, with an average rise of 38.6% across the four products included in the study.
Out of the 68 virgin and extra virgin olive oils sampled in the study, 66 of them have seen price increases from January to September 2023. The two products that have not seen an increase in price are part of temporary offers. A litre of Hojiblanca brand extra virgin olive oil remains priced at 8.30 euros at Eroski, the same as at the start of the year. Furthermore, the five-litre carafe of Carbonell extra virgin olive oil is available at Carrefour for 36.95 euros, 35 cents cheaper than in January when it was priced at 37.30 euros.
