The Battle for Tunisian Olive Oil: Challenging the Colonial Legacy and Building a New Business Model

(CNN) - Tunisia has been producing olive oil for about three thousand years. This year, expectations are that it will become the second largest producer of olive oil in the world. However, it will be difficult to find in stores outside the country a product clearly labeled “Tunisian olive oil.”

For the new generation of independent producers, this paradox is the result of a business model that should have been challenged years ago. Among those determined to prove that there is a better way is the young Tunisian Sarah Ben Romdhane, founder of the organic extra virgin olive oil brand KAÏA.

She told CNN: "In Tunisia, we say that there are more olive trees than Tunisians. Every family has a story with olive oil. My family was the first to export it from Tunisia to the United States. But it is also the magical natural remedy that grandmothers resort to to treat diseases, moisturize the skin, and of course to give food a wonderful taste."

She continued: "Unfortunately, our country has moved away from that deep and personal relationship that we had with our land and its fruits."

During the 2025/2026 season, 86% of Tunisian olive oil exports were sold in bulk to be later bottled under foreign brands, according to local producer OLYFO, with Spain, Italy and the United States being its three largest markets. So, don't expect to find a "Made in Tunisia" stamp: these bulk imports are mostly packed within those countries and blended with local olive oils.

EU regulations impose only general, non-specific statements of origin, such as “a blend of olive oils of European and non-European origin.” Also in the United States, labels can make it difficult to distinguish between the country of import, the country of production, and the country of harvest, which can be very different places.

As a result, Tunisia is often reduced to the role of a low-cost supplier, while the quality of its oil is neglected and its role in the global market is undervalued, according to Ben Romdhane, who explained, “Our olive oil is among the best in the world, and these stereotypes are the result of an injustice imposed on us by foreigners. I wanted a brand like KAÏA to challenge that.”

Ending the colonial legacy in the Tunisian olive oil trade

For his part, Tunisian economist Fadel Kaboub, author of the Global South Perspectives newsletter and associate professor at Denison University in Ohio, believes that the lack of recognition for Tunisian olive oil is closely linked to soft power and quotas “imposed by postcolonial legacies.”

He told CNN: “The real competition is not in olive cultivation, but in controlling the value chain. This is due to colonialism, which imposed a narrative that still exists to this day: former colonies, such as Tunisia, are supposed to supply markets with cheap raw materials, not luxury products.”

Tunisia was subject to French rule between 1881 and 1956. Despite the passage of seven decades since independence, this legacy still weighs on the way the Tunisian government and the European Union manage the olive oil sector, according to Qaboub.

“Olive oil production is expensive, and it is difficult for farmers to obtain local financing because the land is often inherited from tribes and lacks up-to-date title deeds,” he said.

With limited financing options, most Tunisian farmers sell their crop in advance, a year before harvest, to Italians or Spaniards who buy it in bulk. “It doesn’t matter if your crop is the best in the world, because the price, which is usually low compared to the quality and quantity of the product, has already been set.”

He added that this model contributes to the continuation of poverty in the Tunisian countryside, where olive oil does not receive its due value, while seasonal workers, the overwhelming majority of whom are women, struggle to earn a living from it.

Working conditions can be fatal, as olive pickers are transported on trucks designed to transport goods and livestock in large numbers, often without the most basic safety measures. Over the past decade, there have been reports of dozens of accidents and deaths involving agricultural workers while traveling in what are known as “death trucks.”

Motivated to offer an alternative to her country and contribute to improving living standards, Ben Romdhane belongs to a wave of independent producers fighting for Tunisian olive oil to gain the recognition it deserves, including award-winning Les Moulins Mahjoub, Triomphe de Tuccabor and Domaine Fendri.

She said: “I was born in Paris to a Tunisian father and a Syrian mother. I grew up in London, and used to spend the summer in Tunisia. During the Covid-19 pandemic, I felt the need to return to my roots, and this prompted me to reinvest in the long-lived olive trees (over 100 years old) that my family has been growing for five generations, and to produce my own oil, KAÏA.”

She continued: “What we are doing is, in essence, liberating the olive oil trade from the colonial legacy. This message is at the heart of the story the brand is telling, and I really hope it will inspire a new local model.”

From the orchards of Tunisia to fine food stores around the world

In just five years, thanks to the high-quality local Chemlali olive crop and the power of the brand’s story, KAÏA, founded by Ben Ramadan, has succeeded in gaining access to some of the most famous luxury food stores in the world, including “La Grande Épicerie”, “Berrie”, and “G. Detou” in Paris; Selfridges and Harrods in the United Kingdom; Sabah store in New York; and Monsieur Marcel in Los Angeles.

The brand supplies around 100 luxury food stores and around 50 restaurants across France, from the Michelin-recommended Pluto to Café Les Deux Gares and the Savoir Vivre hospitality group. This does not include its points of sale in boutique hotels inside Tunisia.

KAÏA oil is expensive, at $34.99 for 50 cl (17 fluid ounces) at some U.S. retailers, but Ben Ramadan says this price enables her to offer a different model.

Bin Ramadan employs about 50 women and pays them wages equal to men, which is a rarity in the country. It also projects an image based on excellence and quality rather than the image of cheap oil sold in bulk. She says demand for her products is on the rise.

“It is very stressful and very ambitious, but I am very excited to be part of this new sector in the country,” she said.

To meet the growing demand, Bin Ramadan is investing in establishing her own press, scheduled to open in 2027. She currently relies on a shared press, which requires her to personally supervise strict cleaning, processing and temperature control protocols, which is an expensive and time-consuming process.

Owning its own press will give it complete independence, including employing two full-time workers, increasing production beyond its current level of 10 metric tons per year, and even turning the site into a tourist destination for olive oil lovers. For her, this represents another way to raise the image and discourse surrounding Tunisian olive oil.

Although only 3.9% of the olive oil produced in Tunisia last season remained in the African continent, Qaboub pointed out that the demand for olive oil is increasing outside the traditional markets in Europe and the United States.

He said: "Latin America and Asia are also among the developing markets that are witnessing increasing interest, and the quality of Tunisian olive oil should be able to benefit from this demand."

Kaboub believes that, eventually, an alliance of independent producers offering high-quality products, such as Ben Ramadan, could compete with the big Western players and move beyond the luxury food chain to onto supermarket shelves.