With global demand & changing consumption patterns, olive oil has grown into a $10 billion dollar industry.
Of all the agribusiness investment opportunities in Argentina and Uruguay, olive oil estates are some of the youngest and most promising. Increasingly health conscious consumers in foreign countries are stoking global demand for olive oil which has tremendous health benefits including heart disease protection and colon cancer prevention. Industry publication Olive Oil Times says Argentina has capitalized on growing demand in both aging and emerging markets like China and recent droughts in the Mediterranean to emerge as a major producer of aceite de oliva. The online magazine features an interview with Luis Feld, agribusiness expert, former president of the Terranova winery and current owner of a large olive oil estate in the Cuyo region that produces the Vero Andino product line. Even though Feld only planted his first trees five years ago, the success prompted his group to launch a company that markets and sells fractional ownership opportunities in other Cuyo-based olive oil estates. With global consumption approaching 3 million tons per year and average price per ton around US$3,600, we are talking about a roughly US$10 billion industry. In addition to annual rents of 18-20%, the group touts olive oil fractionals as “an attractive alternative for those who believe land, water and agribusiness are strategic businesses of the future.” For more information on agribusiness opportunities in Argentina and Uruguay, visit our archives or download the July 2010 edition of InvestBA Privada.
