First they came for our Lurpak, then they clamped down on coffee, now supermarkets are attaching security tags to a product that might have shot up in price more than any other during this wallet-busting era of soaring food inflation – extra virgin olive oil, known to its legions of fans by the somewhat cringey acronym EVOO. Prices have almost doubled since 2022. The cheapest 500ml bottle is £4.59 from Aldi, rising to £7.35 at the Co-op. Waitrose has one for £22.
Retailers are known for tagging high-value but relatively small products, such as razors, which are easy to steal. But as food inflation took off, so did small thefts – the ONS reported a 24 per cent increase in shoplifting between 2022 and 2023 – and retailers got tag-happy. Asda was tagging the aforementioned Lurpak. A number of supermarkets attached “anti-theft devices” to blocks of basic cheddar. One Tesco store even tagged bottles of Rowse squeezy honey.
Maybe it should come as no surprise they’re now focusing on a luxury item such as olive oil. Extreme weather has ruined olive harvests all over southern Europe and the Middle East for two years in a row, and Europe says it is almost out of reserves. EVOO has always been one of the most commonly adulterated food products but in Spain, which produces 45 per cent of olive oil worldwide, prices have almost tripled in four years. The liquid gold has become the most stolen item across the country and supermarkets are chaining cans together to prevent theft.
I’ve a grudging respect for the beleaguered shopper so attached to their high-quality oil they’ll somehow shoulder a 5l can from under the panopticon eye of supermarket security. While it has always been a high-end ingredient, reportedly popularised in the UK by food writer Elizabeth David, its value as a health product has fanned demand. As the cornerstone of the Mediterranean Diet, which we’re told holds the secret to longevity, EVOO is now idolised as the elixir of immortality.
Is there an alternative? I have four bottles of olive oil in my cupboard, a sign of thrift rather than largesse as they each have a particular use: the cheapest for cooking, the next cheapest for everyday dressings, a peppery Greek one for dipping and drizzling. A small Cypriot bottle given to me, curiously, by a taxi driver in Yorkshire whose family owned the groves, is the source of my own EVOO secret, for this is the bottle I take on holiday with me. Just in case.
Bemoaning the price of olive oil in a time of rampant food insecurity and malnutrition in the UK, as we see demand for food banks soar in line with price hikes, can seem like a case of too-tight diamond shoes, I realise. But it’s not just me who’s noticed that what used to be a kitchen staple is becoming unaffordable – this week thousands of social-media users responded to a photo of sky-high oil prices in Tesco aghast.
I now deploy a range of tricks to make my cooking oils and fats go further. First, if you can, taste the oil. Many cheap options have an acrid aftertaste. But, if you’re cooking with strong flavours, you can get away with an oil you wouldn’t want to taste in a dressing. Rapeseed can be cheaper, and there are some great UK options, but it can have a strong taste, too. I use a light olive oil for many dishes, sunflower for Indian cooking, coconut oil for south Asian recipes or where I want that flavour – it’s great with eggs.
All these lose some of the health benefits of using a good quality olive oil – do read the labels on blended cooking oils – but you do what you can. If baking with children or for something quick during the week, I long ago switched the butter for an inexpensive oil. Yes, it affects the taste, and if you’re someone who puts your makeup on to take the bins out, this might not be for you, but think of it like your wardrobe – we don’t all wear our Sunday best every day.
