Brussels –Italy warned of the “increasing difficulties” facing the olive‑oil sector. It is therefore requesting the activation of the EU Agricultural Reserve to finance “exceptional measures aimed at
addressing serious market disturbances and providing swift support to operators in the sector.” The request is contained in a document in which Rome asks for the matter to be brought before the Agriculture Council on 28 and 29 September.
The document refers to “persistent downward pressure on producer prices, rising stocks and production costs,” which are bringing the sector to its knees. Following the exceptionally high levels reached in the two years 2023–2024, prices for Italian extra virgin olive oil began to fall in the final months of 2025, with the decline intensifying throughout 2026. In some major Italian production areas, the text states, the decline exceeds 50 per cent.
Following the price boom, the Italian extra-virgin olive oil market has therefore reversed course: prices at source have plummeted while production costs remain high. Another factor weighing on the market is the rise in stock levels, indicating that more product is available than the market can absorb. For olive growers, the result is a sharp squeeze on margins: selling oil is less profitable, whilst producing it remains costly.
Added to this is the international context. The rise in energy, fuel and fertiliser costs linked to the crisis in the Middle East is further impacting production costs. “Operators report that current prices are not sufficiently remunerative and that they are facing
increasing liquidity difficulties,” the Italian document states.
The inventory data gives a snapshot of the situation. In Italy, stocks recorded in July 2026 stood at around 233,000 tonnes, compared with around 162,000 tonnes in the same month of 2025: an increase of over 40 per cent. At the EU level, end-of-marketing-year stocks for 2025/26 are estimated at around 420,000 tonnes, up on previous marketing years. “This accumulation highlights the difficulties faced by the
market in absorbing supply and represents an additional factor putting pressure on prices,” the text explains.
For Rome, the situation has taken on an “urgent” character with the start of the new 2026/2027 olive oil season. The proposed solution is therefore to activate the European Union’s Agricultural Reserve, the financial instrument under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) designed to intervene in the event of market crises or exceptional circumstances, with an annual budget of at least 450 million euros.
The reserve was used just last week to support Italian farmers affected by damage caused by avian flu and African swine fever. The European Commission mobilised 73 million euros from the Agricultural Reserve to finance these measures, which were aimed at farmers in the poultry, egg and pigmeat sectors.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
