Olive oil prices skyrocket in NW Syria due to exporting to Turkey
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – Olive oil prices have skyrocketed in northwestern Syria during the past few days due to continuous export of olive oil to Turkey.
The owner of an olive oil press in Idlib Governorate, northwestern Syria, told North Press that the price of a 16-kilogram container of olive oil has skyrocketed to exorbitant levels, amounted to $95 in Idlib and between $90 and $100 in Afrin, northwestern Syria, depending on quality.
In the same period last year, the price for a container of the same size was $50.
The source, on condition of anonymity, attributed the reason of price hikes to Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, aka the Syrian National Army (SNA), that purchase the oil directly from presses or through affiliated companies and export it to Turkey.
In a related incident, militants of the Ninth Brigade, affiliated with the SNA, seized a vehicle loaded with olive oil containers on the road between the city of Afrin and the town of Rajo, north of the city, an exclusive source told North Press.