Olive Oils From Spain launched its first U.S.-market campaign, "All in a Drop," with a trade-and-media event at Rockefeller Center's Loft & Garden on July 21, positioning Spanish extra virgin olive oil as the premium cooking fat for a generation of American operators and food-forward consumers.

The event drew nearly 100 journalists, culinary influencers, and chefs for an evening built around sobremesa—the Spanish post-meal tradition of lingering at the table—and served as the public kickoff for a campaign that will run through 2026 and beyond. Teresa Pérez Millán, General Manager of The Spanish Olive Oil Interprofessional, officially introduced the program and its hero video, anchoring Spain's claim as the world's largest olive oil producer at a moment of accelerating U.S. demand.

The Supply Story

Spain produces nearly 50% of global olive oil output, drawing from more than 200 olive varieties cultivated across 360 million trees—some more than 3,000 years old. That scale of origin diversity is a direct selling point for foodservice operators seeking to differentiate menu applications: the bold, peppery profile of a Picual EVOO performs differently on a composed salad or a high-heat sauté than the buttery, fruity character of an Arbequina, a distinction the campaign is designed to make legible to both professional kitchens and retail buyers.

James Beard Award-winning chef and bestselling author Andy Baraghani served as culinary curator for the launch event, guiding guests through stations including a traditional Corte de Jamón, a Pan con Tomate station, and a grand-finale olive oil cake topped with fresh cream, crushed cherries, and a finishing drizzle of Spanish EVOO. Baraghani's menu was structured explicitly to demonstrate range—from savory applications to pastry—echoing the campaign's core argument that a single drop of Spanish EVOO carries the terroir of its region. "Creating the menu around Spanish extra virgin olive oil was a chance to celebrate one of my favorite ingredients," Baraghani said.

U.S. Market Outlook

The strategic timing is deliberate. Industry analysts project the United States will surpass all other nations in olive oil consumption by 2030, driven by sustained consumer interest in Mediterranean diet patterns and premiumization across both retail and foodservice channels. For commercial operators, that trajectory has practical implications: menu engineers and purchasing directors at full-service and fast-casual chains are increasingly specifying EVOO by origin and variety rather than treating it as a commodity finishing oil.

The "All in a Drop" platform, developed by Havas Miami, will extend through culinary experiences, creator partnerships, and digital storytelling campaigns designed to move Spanish EVOO from specialty-import positioning into mainstream daypart applications. That educational investment mirrors how other origin-specific commodity boards—from California almonds to Idaho potatoes—have successfully built foodservice specification share ahead of retail pull-through.

For operators tracking ingredient sourcing trends in fine-dining and fast-casual segments, the Olive Oils From Spain push signals a more aggressive play for menu placement and culinary training that could influence procurement decisions across the supply chain in the years ahead.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.