The olive is on its way to replacing the peanut in the nation's affections, according to sales figures, suggesting how British consumers are becoming ever more sophisticated.
Sales of olives at Tesco, the country's biggest supermarket, jumped by 44 per cent last year, while peanut sales failed to move.
Industry data from Kantar Worldpanel, the market research company that tracks spending patterns, indicated that last year £66 million worth of olives were sold in retail outlets – 11 times more than pork scratchings, and fast catching up with peanut sales of £81 million.
If Tesco's sales growth is replicated across the country, the olive will trump the peanut within a year, confirming the transformation of Britain from a salty snack munching, beer drinking nation into one that picks on antipasti while sipping wine.
Nicola Jamieson, Tesco's deli counters buyer, said: “Until only recently olives and antipasti would have been considered posh peoples’ nibbles.
“But in the last year they have started to become mainstream and with peanut sales are flat they appear to be replacing them in our affections as a great snacking food.
“While olives have always been popular it is the new stuffed and dressed varieties that are creating the current boom, both as a healthy aperitif but also as general party food nibbles.”
The success of the olive, which a generation ago most consumers considered an acquired taste by, has been helped by its relatively healthy status, compared with saltier crisps and nuts, a factor which has also helped drive sales of oil from the fruit. Olives contain monounsaturated fat, considered the healthiest form of fat, and Vitamin E.
Olive oil, once only available in pharmacists as a treatment for rashes or blocked ears, is now the most common cooking oil in Britain. The country now consumes 28 million litres of olive oil each year, double the amount of just eight years ago. Half of UK homes now use olive oil compared with just 35 per cent in 2001.
Olives have also caught the wave in popularity for Spanish and Italian food, which has seen a surge in sales of chorizo, sherry and anchovies in supermarkets and the emergence of an increasing number of top-end restaurants serving exclusively Iberian or regional Italian food.
Matt Mcauliffe, product development manager at Marks & Spencer, which has also seen a jump in olive sales, said: "Our customer research has shown that consumers now see olives as a must-have store cupboard ingredient - ready for them to serve just in case they have unexpected visitors that they need to impress with a few fancy nibbles."
Snack manufacturers point out that the peanuts are much maligned, providing a rich source of protein and mono unsaturated fats. And though the salty, snack variety may not be flourishing, peanut butter sales have jumped in recent years, taking market share from marmalade.
