Olive oil: zero tolerance for fraud and counterfeiting

“We will continue,” commented Lollobrigida, “to maintain the highest level of focus on the olive sector, strengthening cooperation between the relevant authorities and the tools available for inspection activities, in order to safeguard quality, legality and businesses that comply with the rules.”

“Italian olive oil is unrivalled,” added Lollobrigida, “and we are protecting it by strengthening businesses and improving production. Over the past three years, we have made nearly 1.9 billion euros in funding available to ensure this important sector – which faces fierce competition – remains competitive and strong. We are also working to promote this excellence of ours; last weekend, an advertising campaign was launched on Rai channels to raise awareness amongst Italians – the leading consumers of olive oil – of the importance of its origin and, consequently, its quality.”

“We are calling for olive oil – added Gennaro Sicolo, vice-president of Cia Agricoltori Italiani – to be subject to the same comprehensive checks as wine. We are calling for border checks because Spain and Greece have not produced high-quality crops due to the drought. We, on the other hand, produce 250,000 tonnes and have 130,000 tonnes in stock. We haven’t sold a single litre of oil since January. We are about to lodge complaints with the public prosecutors’ offices in Bari, Catanzaro and Palermo because we have received reports of irregularities to the detriment of Italian olive oil.”

“We agree that border controls should be stepped up,” added Roberto Caponi, Director-General of Confagricoltura, “on imported produce. “We note that the checks carried out show an improvement in their effectiveness. And this means that the intelligence work carried out prior to selecting the sample for inspection has also improved. The system is working.”

“The Coordination Meeting,” added Coldiretti’s president, Ettore Prandini, “is an important opportunity for dialogue with the police. The figures show a significant increase in inspections and penalties. We want more up-to-date technologies to be used, such as isotopic mapping and genomic mapping. We want the Sian register to be linked to farm records; we want a prior notification system to be introduced before importing bulk oils; we want the blending of oils from different origins to be banned, and we want checks at points of sale to be stepped up because there is a 2014 law (No. 161, ed.) requiring the use of anti-refill caps, but it has never been enforced.”

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