Between October 2025 and March 2026, imports of olive oil by several major markets increased by 4.3% compared with the same period of the previous campaign. Most markets recorded a rise in imported volumes, with the exception of Canada and the United States.
According to data from the International Olive Council (IOC), between October 2025 and March 2026, olive oil imports by China and Brazil recorded a strong growth relative to the same period of the previous campaign.
Chinese imports rose from 11,820 tonnes in 2024/2025 to 19,051 tonnes in 2025/2026, an increase of 7,231 tonnes and 61.2%. This represents one of the strongest gains among the markets presented. The imported volume also slightly exceeds the average of 18,780 tonnes, by nearly 1.4%.
Brazil’s purchases rose from 31,580 to 44,365 tonnes, i.e., 12,785 tonnes more and a growth of 40.5%. Despite this strong increase, imports remain below the indicated average of 48,194 tonnes, by about 7.9%.
Thus, Brazil remains a clearly larger market in volume, with more than 44,000 tonnes imported, compared with about 19,000 tonnes for China. By contrast, China shows the fastest growth momentum, with an increase of more than 60%.
This evolution is all the more notable as the total imports of the group of markets presented rose by only 4.3% over the period. China and Brazil thus appear as two major engines of the rise in olive oil demand outside traditional markets.
For the European Union, olive oil imports from non-EU countries reached 121,481 tonnes between October 2025 and March 2026, compared with 105,430 tonnes during the same period of the 2024/2025 campaign. This represents an increase of 16,051 tonnes, or a year-on-year rise of 15.2%.
