Social media and newspapers have been filled with images of empty supermarket shelves, as people around the country have rushed out to purchase all their essentials should they have to self-isolate due to the spread of the coronavirus.
As well as tins of tomatoes, pasta, rice, hand wash and toilet roll, something that seems to be selling fast is olive oil, with shoppers stocking up on the fat so they have enough to cook with over the next few weeks.
According to Spain’s national agri-food co-operative, olive oil demand has surged since the outbreak of the coronavirus in February.
Speaking with El Diario, president of the company Angel Villafranca, said: “Olive oil bottlers are working 24 hours per day in three shifts without stopping the factory.”
This coincides with figures by global marketing research firm Nielsen, which Olive Oil Times revealed, showing that purchases of olive oil increased by five per cent during the last week of February in comparison with the same month in 2019. This happens to be the beginning of the outbreak in Spain, suggesting that shoppers went out in their dozens to purchase whatever stock of olive oil was available.
Sales of olive oil continued to rise, increasing by 0.9 per cent from the first week of March in 2019 to the same period in 2020.
Mr Villafranca said many people are still demanding premium olive oil, stating: “We are not only talking about Spain, but we are also exporting a good part of our products.”
As well as providing people with a source of fat to cook with, olive oil could be in particularly high demand at the moment due to its reported health benefits.
Most recently, a study by researchers at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences of the UB, the Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition Networking Biomedical Research Centre (CIBERobn) and the University of Sao Paulo showed extra virgin olive oil keeps its health properties even when it is heated up.
The findings, which were published in the journal Antioxidants, revealed its compounds polyphenols still provided levels of antioxidants required by the European Union to be classified as ‘healthy’. This is despite the content of polyphenols declining by 40 per cent at 120C and 75 per cent at 170C.
Indeed, the European Food Safety Agency has concluded that olive oils containing more than 250mg/kg of polyphenol have confirmed health benefits.
Among the health benefits these polyphenols provide are inflammation relief; weight management; easing digestion issues; protection against type 2 diabetes; and boosting brain and cardiovascular health.
Another study, which was recently published in Science Daily, also revealed that extra virgin olive oil can delay age-related illnesses, particularly when combined with fasting.
The findings were discovered by researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics and reported in Molecular Cell.
It showed that consuming the fat in extra virgin olive oil, together with limiting caloric intake and regularly taking part in exercising, could boost its benefits.