Morocco Gets More for Food Exports as Import Costs Ease Slightly
Moroccan food exports are fetching higher values than last year. In the second quarter of 2026, their average value per unit rose by 16.2%. Meanwhile, the average value of food products bought abroad edged down.
The contrast is reflected in foreign trade indices published on Monday, October 5, by the High Commission for Planning. The “food, beverages and tobacco” category recorded a 16.2% rise in unit export values, compared with a 0.6% drop in import values, from spring 2025.
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The indicator compares the value of trade with the corresponding quantities. It can therefore distinguish between goods fetching higher values and a simple increase in the volumes sold. Its rise may reflect higher prices, but also a change in the composition of shipments, with a greater share of more highly remunerated products.
For food, the two trends are therefore moving in opposite directions: exported units are gaining value, while imported ones are costing slightly less on average. However, the baskets of products bought and sold remain different.
The increase in food exports exceeds that for all Moroccan exports, whose unit values are up 10.9%. It remains below that for semi-finished products, up 23.4%, but is well above the 3.6% rise for finished consumer goods.
Higher sales values do not guarantee better margins
On the import side, energy supplies are becoming much more expensive: their unit values have surged by 53.1%. The figures thus show exports fetching higher values in several categories, alongside mounting pressure on some imported products.
Avocado professionals know the difference between commercial value and profitability all too well. At a conference held in Tangier in late September, a producer-exporter described margins that had become minimal. Advances to producers, quality requirements and distributors’ claims can eat into some of the revenue.
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The olive sector, meanwhile, illustrates the growth in sales opportunities. According to Spanish customs data cited by El Debate, Spain bought 22 652 tonnes of Moroccan olive oil between January and July 2026, compared with 397 tonnes over the same period in 2025.
These purchases prompted protests by Spanish olive growers, who accuse processors of favouring foreign supplies to put pressure on prices. Moroccan volumes remain below those from Tunisia, which supplied Spain with about 70 100 tonnes during those seven months.
