Spain
USA trade laneSpain produces roughly half the world's olive oil and ships a specialty-food catalog — canned seafood, saffron, cheeses, jarred vegetables — that US distributors and retailers prize. This is a food lane through and through, so the FDA framework shapes every shipment alongside the freight itself. (Wine has its own permit chain and its own guide; cured meats such as jamón fall under a separate USDA regime and are not covered here.)
AGF moves Spanish food cargo with temperature discipline — olive oil and cheese both degrade with heat — and with prior notice and label checks built into every booking. In Spain we work through WCA partner agents (AGF has no office there), and US entries are filed by our licensed customs brokers.
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Shipping Olive Oil & Foods from Spain to USA
Bottled oil and jarred foods ship palletized in dry containers most of the year, with reefer or insulated routing recommended for summer sailings — a Mediterranean-to-Atlantic July crossing can cook delicate product. Bulk olive oil moves in flexitanks (roughly 20,000+ liters per container) for US bottlers, a major and growing format.
Transit is mercifully short: 10–16 days from Valencia or Algeciras to the East Coast, keeping harvest-fresh product genuinely fresh on American shelves.
- Flexitanks for bulk oil; palletized cases for bottled goods
- Summer sailings: temperature-protected routing for oil and cheese
- Glass discipline — bottle cargo palletized and edge-protected
- Mixed Spanish-pantry consolidations for specialty distributors
What Drives the Cost
- Bulk flexitank vs bottled case economics
- Seasonal temperature protection premiums
- Duty and any active EU-trade measures at entry time
- FDA prior notice, FSVP and label work per product line
- Consolidation across producers and regions
HS Codes and Duty Notes
Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.
| HS Code | Products | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1509 | Olive oil | Modest base duties; EU-US trade disputes have periodically touched Spanish products, so current-measure checks are part of quoting. |
| 0910.20 | Saffron | High value per kilo, so it often flies rather than sails; FDA food rules apply, and adulteration is a known risk in this trade, so supplier documentation matters. |
| 2005.70 | Prepared ripe olives | The famous trap: Spanish ripe olives carry US antidumping/countervailing duties. Table olives need scope review before ordering — olive oil does not carry these orders. |
| 1604 / 0406 | Canned seafood / cheeses | Standard FDA food framework; dairy adds certification layers worth confirming per product. |
Regulations and Compliance
FDA framework
Registered facilities, prior notice, FSVP, and US-compliant nutrition/allergen labeling — the standard regime, which established Spanish exporters handle fluently. Labels print at origin, always.
Cheese and dairy quotas
Many cheeses fall under US dairy tariff-rate quotas: an importer holding a USDA dairy import licence pays the in-quota rate, everyone else the higher over-quota rate. Raw-milk cheeses must be aged at least 60 days. We confirm the quota position with you before the container books.
AD/CVD on ripe olives
Spanish ripe table olives have carried antidumping and countervailing duties since 2018 — a genuine landed-cost factor for that specific product. Verify scope and supplier rates before contracting table olives; oil and most other foods are unaffected.
Door-to-Door Import Service
From mills in Andalusia and producers across Spain to US distributors: pickup and consolidation through our WCA partner agents, temperature-aware booking, FDA-aligned entries filed by our licensed customs brokers, and delivery — with flexitank programs for bulk buyers and mixed-pantry containers for specialty importers.
For brands launching Spanish products in the US, we run the freight half of market entry while your importer handles permits and placement — the same division of labor as our other food lanes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is olive oil shipped from Spain in bulk?
What's the catch with importing Spanish olives?
Do I need FDA registration to import olive oil from Spain?
Olive Oil & Foods is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.
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