Several supermarket chains in Southern European countries have started limiting the amount of sunflower oil per consumer, fearing shortages. Only five liters per customer may now be sold. Due to the Russian war in Ukraine, there is fear of hoarding which could lead to food shortages.
Together, Ukraine and Russia account for the largest share of the global export of sunflower oil, with Ukraine supplying 35 to 40 percent of the sunflower oil refined in the EU.
In Italy, some national retailers such as Coop, Eurospin, Famila, and Mega have reportedly started rationing seed oil in the regions of Liguria, Tuscany, and Veneto. In supermarkets in Treviso and Belluno, customers are only allowed to buy two bottles, as local press reports indicate incidents of hoarding behavior.
In some supermarkets in Tuscany, customers can only purchase five 1-liter bottles of sunflower oil and two 1-liter bottles of cornseed oil.
Food and agricultural experts warned the European Commission behind closed doors last Wednesday about overreactions to the food situation. Individual actions by 'one or two EU countries or some supermarkets' can create the impression 'that something is wrong' and lead to hoarding and panic buying.
The expert group is currently working on drafting an 'agricultural action plan' which is scheduled for the agenda of the EU Agriculture Council in about a week and a half.
According to European manufacturers, the available stock of crude sunflower oil in the EU is still sufficient for four to six weeks, after which the first shortages are expected. Alternatives to sunflower oil such as rapeseed, coconut, palm, and soybean oil are available, but production of these is also facing high fuel and energy prices.
The Spanish oil industry does not yet see any reason for immediate concern. However, the organization admitted that if the conflict continues, it will be necessary to look for another solution. This includes, among other things, bringing fallow fields into use.
This call was earlier heeded by the French Presidency of the EU Council and other agriculture ministers of the EU-27, who want to reserve the 10% of agricultural land designated for landscapes with high biodiversity for the production of protein-containing crops.
This option is currently being considered by the European Commission as part of a package of solutions to help alleviate the situation in the European agro-food sector and will now be discussed during the upcoming meeting of the Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA) next Monday (March 14).