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Tunisia's National Observatory of Agriculture (ONAGRI) reported that the country's food trade balance posted a surplus of TND 983.1 million in the first eight months of 2026, up sharply from TND 684.1 million in the same period of 2025, an increase of approximately TND 299 million. The figures point to a strengthening capacity of food exports to cover imports.
The coverage ratio, which measures food export value as a percentage of food import value, climbed to 119.3% at the end of August 2026, compared with 115.8% a year earlier, confirming that exports continued to outpace imports and reinforcing the positive trade balance.
In terms of trade flows, food exports grew 20.7% year-on-year in the January–August period, while food imports rose 17.1%. The faster pace of export growth was the main driver behind the wider surplus, underscoring the central role of export performance in shaping the direction of the country's food trade balance.
Olive oil stood out as the principal engine of this improvement, with export performance strong on both value and volume. Olive oil export revenues increased from TND 2.702 billion in the first eight months of 2025 to TND 3.770 billion in the same period of 2026, a jump of 39.5%.
Volumes followed the same trajectory, rising from 210,700 tonnes to around 301,400 tonnes, an increase of roughly 90,700 tonnes. However, this revenue growth was not driven by prices; in fact, the average export price declined 2.5% to TND 12.51 per kilogram, indicating that higher shipment volumes more than offset softer pricing and highlighting the decisive role of volume growth in supporting the sector's overall earnings.
On the import side, cereals remained one of the largest components of Tunisia's food import bill. The value of cereal imports rose 13.2% during the period under review, despite declines in the prices of several imported grains. Import prices fell 13.5% for durum wheat, 3.3% for soft wheat, and 2.1% for corn, reflecting uneven price trends across the international grain market.
These developments are particularly significant given the weight of cereals in Tunisia's food import basket, where rising values put pressure on the trade balance. Strong food export growth, led by olive oil, more than compensated for this effect and preserved the surplus.
A year-on-year comparison of the January–August indicators for 2025 and 2026 shows that the improvement was not the result of falling imports, which actually rose 17.1%, but rather of export growth outpacing that figure at 20.7%. The widening gap between export and import growth lifted the coverage ratio from 115.8% to 119.3% within a single year.
Olive oil's standout performance, with revenues climbing from TND 2.702 billion to TND 3.770 billion, volumes rising from 210,700 tonnes to 301,400 tonnes, and the average export price easing 2.5% to TND 12.51 per kilogram, underlines the strategic weight of this commodity in Tunisia's agri-food trade. At the same time, the data highlights the sector's sensitivity to global price movements, with revenues shaped by both production volumes and international market dynamics.
Overall, ONAGRI's figures paint a positive picture of Tunisia's food trade balance through August 2026, although the trajectory for the remaining months of the year will depend on the performance of exports, particularly olive oil, as well as on global price trends for food and cereals and Tunisia's import requirements.
Based on the data available through the end of August 2026, olive oil clearly stands out as one of the most important drivers of Tunisia's food exports, while cereals remain a dominant component of imports. The performance of agri-food exports and the evolution of international food prices will continue to be the two decisive factors shaping the country's food trade balance for the rest of the year.
Source: Assabah