South America Vegetable Oil Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends And Forecast (2026 - 2031)

South America Vegetable Oil Market Trends and Insights

Rising Demand for Healthier Cooking Alternatives

Urban households in São Paulo, Buenos Aires, and Santiago are substituting saturated-fat sources with soybean, sunflower, and canola oils that deliver higher unsaturated-fat profiles. Brazil's Ministry of Health reported a 12% decline in trans-fat intake between 2020 and 2024, correlating with a significant volume increase in refined soybean oil sales through modern retail channels^{[3]Source: Brazil's Ministry of Health, "Highlights", gov.br}. This shift is amplified by private-label offerings in hypermarkets that price heart-healthy blends competitively against traditional lard and palm-based shortenings. Retailers are also introducing fortified oils with added omega-3 and vitamin D, targeting middle-income consumers who previously lacked access to functional foods. The trend extends beyond retail; foodservice operators in Brazil and Argentina are reformulating menus to comply with front-of-pack warning labels that flag high saturated-fat content, indirectly boosting demand for liquid vegetable oils in commercial kitchens.

Growing Consumer Awareness of Nutritional Benefits

Pan American Health Organization campaigns across South America have spotlighted omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin E as preventive nutrients for cardiovascular disease, prompting a year-on-year increase in canola and sunflower oil imports into Chile and Peru during 2024, according to the Pan American Health Organization. Social-media influencers and government-backed nutrition programs are disseminating messages that link polyunsaturated fats to reduced inflammation and improved cognitive function, creating a halo effect for premium-priced oils. Argentina's National Institute of Food Technology published guidelines in 2024 recommending daily intake thresholds for omega-6 and omega-3 ratios, which food processors are now printing on labels to differentiate products according to the National Institute of Agricultural Technology. This awareness is not confined to affluent segments; even rural cooperatives in Brazil are marketing cold-pressed oils with nutritional claims, leveraging local trust networks to penetrate underserved markets.

Expansion of Food Processing and Packaged Food Industries

Brazil's food-processing sector generated significant revenue during 2024, expanding year-on-year as manufacturers scaled production of ready-to-eat meals, bakery goods, and dairy alternatives that require substantial vegetable-oil inputs. Snack manufacturers in Argentina and Colombia are reformulating recipes to replace palm oil with sunflower or soybean oil in response to European Union deforestation regulations that threaten market access for non-certified palm derivatives. The rise of plant-based protein analogs, soy burgers, chickpea patties, has created a parallel demand stream for emulsifying agents derived from refined oils. Confectionery producers are also adopting fractionated palm oil and interesterified blends to achieve desired melt profiles without hydrogenation, a shift that requires tighter collaboration between oilseed crushers and ingredient formulators.

Technological Improvements in Extraction and Refining Processes

Enzyme-assisted aqueous extraction and supercritical CO₂ methods are gaining traction in Brazil and Argentina, enabling processors to achieve 95% oil recovery from soybeans versus 92% with conventional hexane solvent systems. Membrane filtration technologies introduced in 2024 allow continuous removal of phospholipids and free fatty acids without chemical degumming, reducing wastewater by 40% and cutting refining costs by 8-12%. Cargill's 2024 biodiesel-facility upgrade in Brazil incorporated enzymatic transesterification, which operates at lower temperatures and yields higher-purity glycerol as a co-product for pharmaceutical applications. Cold-press equipment with nitrogen blanketing is being deployed by organic-certified mills in Argentina to preserve tocopherol content and extend shelf life, addressing export-market demands for minimally processed oils. These innovations compress payback periods for capital investments, making automation economically viable even for mid-sized cooperatives.

Fluctuations in Raw Material Crop Yields Due to Weather and Climate Variability

La Niña episodes in 2024 and early 2025 reduced soil moisture across Argentina and southern Brazil, cutting Argentine soybean output to 48.5 million metric tons versus a potential 52 million metric tons under neutral conditions, according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. Conversely, northern Brazil experienced above-average rainfall that delayed planting and increased fungal pressure, compressing harvest windows and elevating drying costs. El Niño transitions create opposite risks: excessive heat in Argentina can abort pod formation, while flooding in Rio Grande do Sul disrupts logistics and spoils stored beans. These swings translate directly into crush margins; when bean prices spike, processors either curtail runs or pass costs to buyers, dampening demand from price-sensitive foodservice operators. Climate modeling suggests La Niña frequency may increase through 2030, necessitating investments in drought-tolerant soybean varieties and precision irrigation, capital outlays that smaller farms struggle to finance.

Competition from Alternative Lipid Sources

Beef tallow from Brazil's and Argentina's cattle industries offers a lower-cost feedstock for biodiesel blending, capturing a significant portion of industrial fat demand in 2024 and exerting downward pressure on vegetable-oil prices, according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. Precision-fermentation startups in Chile and Brazil are piloting microbial oils that replicate palm-oil fatty-acid profiles without land-use concerns, attracting venture funding. While these alternatives remain subscale, their presence in ingredient catalogs signals to buyers that vegetable oils must compete on sustainability credentials and price stability. Animal-fat availability fluctuates with livestock cycles, but during periods of high cattle slaughter, tallow floods biodiesel auctions and undercuts soybean-oil bids. Synthetic-biology platforms are also targeting omega-3 production via algae fermentation, potentially displacing fish oil and canola oil in nutraceutical applications by 2028.

Segment Analysis

By Type: Soybean Dominance Anchors Crush Economics

Soybean oil held 42.31% of market share in 2025, underpinned by Brazil's and Argentina's combined 227 million metric tons of bean production and entrenched crushing infrastructure that processes meal for export alongside oil for domestic biodiesel. Palm oil, despite a smaller base, is forecast to grow at a 7.65% CAGR through 2031, driven by Colombia's 1.88 million metric tons of sustainable-certified output and Agropalma's expansion across 45,000 hectares in Brazil's Pará state. Rapeseed oil remains a niche play, concentrated in Chile and southern Argentina, where cooler climates favor canola cultivation; volumes are modest but command premiums in health-food channels due to favorable omega-3 profiles. Sunflower oil production in Argentina reached approximately 4 million metric tons in 2024, serving both domestic frying applications and European export markets that prize its light flavor and high smoke point.

Peanut oil occupies a specialty segment in confectionery and gourmet cooking, with limited acreage in Argentina and Brazil constraining supply growth. Coconut oil is almost entirely imported from Asia, used primarily in personal-care formulations and premium bakery fats. Olive oil production is emerging in Argentina's Mendoza and La Rioja provinces, targeting export markets in North America and Europe, where South American origin commands curiosity value; however, volumes remain below 30,000 metric tons annually and face quality-consistency challenges. The "Other Types" category captures minor oils, cottonseed, sesame, flaxseed that serve artisanal and organic niches. Enzyme-assisted extraction technologies introduced in 2025 are improving recovery rates for soybean and sunflower oils by 3 percentage points, directly enhancing crush margins and incentivizing capacity expansions.

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Nature: Conventional Scale Meets Organic Premiums

Conventional oils commanded 93.52% of the market in 2025, reflecting the dominance of large-scale monoculture systems optimized for herbicide-tolerant soybean and hybrid sunflower varieties. Organic oils, though marginal at present, are accelerating at 8.44% CAGR through 2031, propelled by the USDA's 2024 organic-equivalency agreement with Brazil that halved certification timelines and unlocked North American retail channels. Argentine producers are converting 15,000-20,000 hectares annually to organic protocols, motivated by 40-50% price premiums and long-term contracts with 

European buyers who prioritize non-GMO sourcing. Organic acreage faces agronomic headwinds, yields trail conventional by 20-30%, pest pressure intensifies without synthetic insecticides, and weed management relies on mechanical cultivation that raises labor costs. Intercropping legumes and cover crops can restore soil nitrogen, but extension services to train farmers in these practices remain underfunded in rural Brazil and Paraguay. Retailers in Chile and Colombia are dedicating premium shelf space to organic cooking oils, often co-merchandised with plant-based proteins to reinforce health positioning and capture millennial spending.

By End-User: Food Processing Leads, Biofuel Surges

The food processing industry absorbed 43.12% of the vegetable oil volume in 2025, driven by Brazil's food processing sector, which expanded year-on-year as manufacturers scaled up production of ready-to-eat meals, bakery goods, snacks, and dairy alternatives. Industrial and biofuel applications are climbing at 7.91% CAGR through 2031, reflecting Brazil's B15 biodiesel mandate and Argentina's export-tax reforms that restored crushing economics. Foodservice operators, restaurants, catering chains, and institutional kitchens represent a stable mid-tier segment; however, front-of-pack warning labels in Chile, Peru, and Uruguay are prompting menu reformulations that favor liquid oils over solid fats. Personal care and cosmetics applications leverage coconut, olive, and specialty oils for emollients and surfactants, a niche that grows in tandem with premium beauty brands entering South American markets. 

Retail channels, supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenience stores, and online platforms distribute bottled oils directly to households, a segment that benefits from private-label penetration and promotional pricing. Within food processing, bakery and confectionery sub-segments consume oils for dough conditioning, frying, and cream fillings, while snacks and savory products require high-stability oils that withstand repeated heating cycles. Ready-to-eat and prepared foods demand emulsifying and texturizing agents derived from refined oils, and dairy and non-dairy alternatives use vegetable fats to replicate mouthfeel in plant-based cheeses and yogurts. Online retail stores are capturing incremental share as e-commerce penetration in Brazil and Argentina accelerates, offering subscription models for bulk oil purchases that appeal to cost-conscious urban households.

Geography Analysis

Brazil secured 54.05% of the South America vegetable oil market in 2025, anchored by a record 175 million metric tons of soybean production in the 2025/26 season. The country's biodiesel mandate escalated from B14 to B15 in 2025, directly converting an additional 500,000 metric tons of soybean oil into renewable diesel and tightening domestic supply-demand balances. Agropalma's 45,000-hectare palm-oil estate in Pará state holds RSPO certification and supplies sustainable feedstock to European buyers, illustrating how environmental credentials unlock premium pricing. However, Asian soybean rust costs growers USD 2.8 billion per harvest cycle, and La Niña-induced drought in southern states periodically disrupts logistics, injecting volatility that favors vertically integrated players.

Argentina is forecast to grow at a 9.56% CAGR through 2031, propelled by export-tax reductions from 31% to 24.5% for soybean meal and oil that restored competitiveness to crushing infrastructure and enabled the country to process 42 million metric tons annually. Aceitera General Deheza expanded crushing capacity in 2024, while Vicentin navigated financial restructuring challenges that temporarily curtailed operations. Sunflower oil production reached approximately 4 million metric tons in 2024, serving both domestic frying applications and European export markets that prize its light flavor and high smoke point. Corn stunt disease devastated the 2023 maize crop, prompting farmers to rotate into soybeans in 2024 and 2025, which temporarily boosted oilseed area but heightened monoculture risks and soil-nutrient depletion. 

Colombia, Chile, Peru, and the rest of South America collectively represent smaller shares but are pivotal for palm-oil sustainability certifications and niche organic segments. Colombia produced 1.88 million metric tons of palm oil in 2024, with Fedepalma coordinating RSPO certifications that grant access to European and North American buyers demanding deforestation-free supply chains. Chile relies on imports for most vegetable oils but is cultivating canola in southern regions and enforcing front-of-pack warning labels that penalize saturated fats, indirectly boosting demand for liquid oils. Peru's palm-oil expansion in Amazon regions has attracted sustainability scrutiny, prompting producers to pursue RSPO certification to maintain export eligibility. The EU-Mercosur trade agreement, expected to enter force in 2026, will impose deforestation-free certifications for palm and soy exports, elevating compliance costs but creating opportunities for certified producers to command premium pricing.