Tuvalu is located in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 4,000 km from Hawaii and Australia. It is an island state in Oceania. It is the fourth smallest country in the world, geographically isolated and extremely vulnerable to external factors (including climatic phenomena). It has about 11,800 inhabitants and is included in the list of «Least Developed Countries». The majority of the population bases its livelihood on agriculture and fishing. The only Tuvaluan crop exported is copra. Its resources are extremely limited: the sale of fishing licenses (mainly to Taiwan, Japan and the United States) is its most important source of income.
The consumption of edible vegetable and animal fats in this country is around 219 tons, of which 1 ton is olive oil. Tuvalu is a consumer rather than a producer of olive oil, consuming only about 0.09 kg of oil per person per year.
Of the total oil consumption among users in this country, only 0.5% consumes olive oil. As for the profile of users who consume olive oil according to sex in Tuvalu, women account for 44.4% and men for 55.6%.
The age range that consumes the greatest amount of olive oil is people over 65 years of age, which is at 42%. This is followed by the population between 34 and 49 years of age, at 32%.
The percentage of olive oil consumption according to family structure is predominantly middle-aged families with children, which is at 25%. This is followed by middle-aged families without children, at 18%.
Those with a medium (57%) or high (21%) income level consume more olive oil. In addition, the percentage of olive oil consumption is higher in those people who have a higher academic education, i.e. university education, standing at 39% with respect to the other academic backgrounds.
As for the different types of olive oil which are consumed, the one that stands out the most among users in the country of Tuvalu is Olive Oil, accounting for 46% and Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which accounts for 37%. Olive oil is consumed in PET containers (55%) and glass containers (43%). The majority of the population uses both olive oil and extra virgin olive oil raw, i.e. in salads, for example, accounting for 72% of the population.
99% of the population that consumes olive oil does so at home, the remaining 1% outside the home. The highest proportion of establishments where olive oil is consumed outside the home is in hotels (60%), followed by bars and restaurants (15%).
The main establishments where olive oils are purchased are supermarkets (44%), hypermarkets (25%), as well as oil mills, bottling plants, bars and other points of sale (22%). Despite being ranked as one of the least developed countries, 6% of the population buys olive oil through the Internet.