The Jaén reference sits 1.37€/kg below Italy's indicative average. How much a bottler can save depends on the origin label and the cost of an equivalent lot delivered.

Fresh olive oil at a mill in Puglia, Italy. Photo: Leonardo Delsabio / Pexels

On 27 October, OliveTerm's indicative price board put Spanish extra virgin olive oil at 3.20€ per kilogram and Italian extra virgin at 4.57€. Both readings were labelled as desk estimates. The Spanish series refers to Jaén; the Italian one is a national average. The board still carried those dates when checked on 28 October.

Across 100 tonnes, the 1.37€/kg difference amounts to 137,000€ before delivery costs.

For a bottler allowed to source from either country, a gap of that size warrants asking for offers. The comparison soon becomes more demanding than the screen suggests. The available oil must fit the product being sold, and the cheaper lot must retain its advantage by the time it reaches the bottling plant.