In Spain, the world’s largest producer of olive oil, supermarkets lock olive oil bottlesas its price increases and at the same time thefts.

A liter of extra virgin olive oil costs up to 14.5 euros in some supermarkets, with the result that many stores put anti-theft labels on the bottles.

“We’re seeing a big increase in theft,” said Ruben Navarro, president and CEO of the Tu Super supermarket chain, which has 30 stores in the Andalusia region.

The price of olive oil, which now officially amounts to 8 euros per liter, has increased by 150% over the past two years in Spain, as drought in the south has significantly affected the harvest. Organized crime gangs steal olive oil to sell, Navarro explained.

Since September, Tu Super has chained the five liter bottles and locked them on the shelves to prevent theft.

“It’s an absurd, extreme measure, but it has worked”Navarro explained.

Tu Super is not the only chain to increase security measures: in some supermarkets of the Carrefour and Auchan chains in Madrid, anti-theft devices have been placed on the one-liter bottles, and in order to buy olive oil one must ask for the help of an employee.

STC, a Spanish company that offers solutions to combat shoplifting, saw a 12-fold increase in orders from supermarkets for machinery to protect olive oil bottles over the summer, said its executive Salvador Canones.

Police in Spain are also talking about thefts from olive mills, and in October arrested two people as part of an investigation into the theft of 56 tonnes of extra virgin olive oil.

Usually families in Spain bought large quantities of olive oil for cooking. Although Spaniards are among the world’s biggest consumers of olive oil, they have been forced to cut back heavily: In September, sales of extra virgin olive oil fell 17% year-on-year, according to NielsenIQ.

However, shoplifting is not limited to olive oil, with supermarkets seeing a general increase in the phenomenon. The Spanish Confederation of Employers and Industries (CEOE) pointed out that 2022 saw a 30% increase in retail theft, while so far in 2023 theft has increased by a further 12%.

In Spain the theft of items worth less than 400 euros is not punished, unless the person who committed it has relapsed.