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Grove robbers target 'liquid gold' as olive oil prices triple globally

November 9, 2023 - from the EuroNews:

"Criminals across the Mediterranean region are stealing olives and branches and even cutting down trees to lay their hands on the fruit that has tripled in price since 2019. Some of the trees have stood for more than a hundred years.

"A global surge in olive oil prices – which have tripled since 2019 to set records – has presented criminals across the Mediterranean with an opportunity.

"Warehouse break-ins, accounting scams and oil tampering are on the rise in the olive growing heartlands of Greece, Spain and Italy. And with growing frequency, gangs use chainsaws to hack off branches and cut down entire trees at unguarded groves.

"The crimes are compounding distress among growers already battling high production costs and the impact of climate change: warm winters, major floods, and more intense forest fires.

"fter decades of growth, the global olive oil market has been disrupted by a near two-year drought in southern Spain, a country that typically covers 40% of the world's supply.

"According to European Union estimates, the Spanish slump will help push global production down to 2.5 million metric tons in the 2022-23 crop year, from 3.4 million in the previous annual cycle.

"With global demand remaining high, international importers are often willing to offer prices above domestic rates. Year-on-year exports from Greece more than doubled in the first five months of 2023, while Turkey in August suspended exports to protect its domestic market.

"In late 2019, wholesale prices dropped below 3 euros per kilogram. By last September, they had reached 9 euros per kilo."