Mouthing Off | Why is olive oil so expensive now, and how good are alternatives like walnut and avocado?

When it comes to healthy fats, there is nothing better than a bottle of really good extra virgin olive oil.

Every Mediterranean cuisine relies on its fruity yet bitter taste. The fresh and pungent aroma just smells like a summer holiday.

For many chefs, it is a requisite to drizzle a good glug to finish every salad, seafood and pasta dish. At Italian restaurants, I have unconsciously gorged myself on bread and olive oil, leaving no room for my antipasto and pasta.

You cannot beat its health properties and antioxidant polyphenols. It is good for your heart, improves your skin and hair, prevents inflammation, and even protects against cancer.

The cost of olive oil – and other “fancy” oils – has risen dramatically in the past few years. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

But recently, the price of this “liquid gold” has shot up significantly. I distinctly recall being able to buy one litre (35 fl oz) bottles for as little as HK$70 in my local supermarket in the 2000s. These days, you would be hard-pressed to find it for less than HK$120, even on sale.

In some speciality stores, I have been left mouth agape by the staggeringly exorbitant cost of some of the really fancy oils – and I’m not talking about the bottles with edible gold flakes floating inside.