The Inclusion of Spain in the International Food Consumption Oil Market: a Perspective of the Traditional Olive Grove Crisis, 1950-1980

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to attempt to describe and explain certain reasons of the traditional olive grove crisis as result of the inclusion of Spain in the international market of the food consumption vegetable oils. Since the end of the XIX century the national market of food consumption oils were reserved for the Spanish olive oil. The change of the commercial policy established after the Stabilization plan, wich was favorable to the entry of cheap oils from foreign countries, as well as the new model of the cattle nutritous based on vegetable protein created a huge volume of oil in Spain. This situation provided a top limit on the olive oil prices. This paper underlines the influence of the food consumption oil in the olive grove crisis, however, does not deny the importance of other factors like the increase of the production cost, the lack of improvement of the production returns of the olive oil, and the export policies at that time in Spain.