A coffee with Nieves Ocaña, Head of Global Purchasing at DEOLEO

Empack: Tell us a bit about your experience at Deoleo and what your day-to-day work within the company is like.

Nieves: I have been part of Deoleo for more than two decades. From day one, I have felt proud to work for a company that is part of our Mediterranean culture thanks to its flagship product: olive oil. We work with leading global brands such as Carbonell, Bertolli and Carapelli, and that leadership is reflected in the figures. In 2024, the company reached a turnover of nearly €996 million, which highlights the scale and impact of our daily work.

My career has always been linked to the Purchasing and Supply area, where we coordinate everything from supplier sourcing and selection to category strategy, critical negotiations, contracting, and just-in-time supply of materials to our plants. Day-to-day work is very dynamic, combining long-term strategic vision — essential to mitigate global risks — with immediate operational management. The key lies in anticipation and agility: analysing real-time data, understanding global market trends, and making swift decisions to ensure the supply of materials with the quality and timing required by both our customers and production.

I am part of a highly talented and experienced team, which makes the work flow naturally and efficiently. In addition, we contribute directly to sustainability goals and to driving innovation in new packaging formats.

Empack: After more than 20 years of experience in the company, which projects have been the most challenging, or which ones do you remember most and why?

Nieves: Throughout my career I have faced many challenges, but the most significant ones have undoubtedly been the integrations resulting from the acquisition of other companies. Aligning methodologies, processes and, above all, very different working cultures under one umbrella is not easy. However, the effort invested has allowed us to grow, learn from best practices and generate very positive operational and cultural synergies across the entire global corporation.

Another project I remember with particular satisfaction — and one that truly transformed our area — was the full digitalisation of Purchasing through the implementation of an advanced electronic negotiation platform. This change was a major turning point, forcing us to review the entire process from start to finish, but the outcome was a much more transparent, agile and effective system. It enabled us to standardise process reuse, define a common working methodology across different countries, and provided the visibility we needed for more informed decision-making.

In terms of innovation, in 2025 we launched our “CHEF” project (what others call an “oil dispenser”), which is completely new in terms of packaging: a new bottle, a new cap, and a radically different concept in both image and user experience for the consumer. This strategic rollout was successfully implemented under our main brands in key markets such as Spain, Italy and the United States.