Over the course of the year, the European Court of Auditors will publish the findings of an independent evaluation (audit) that will analyse theeffectiveness of the protection offered by the European Union for an “iconic” product like olive oil, which “Like French wine or Belgian chocolate, it is a cornerstone of our continent's culinary heritage”.
Food safety
He gives the news Askanews, stressing that the ongoing audit focuses on the specific control systems for the Marketing standards and food safety of olive oil, which the Court had never directly addressed. Thanks to this audit, which ranges from checks on the origin and quality of the oil to measures aimed at ensuring the absence of harmful contaminants, “the aim is to shed light on the mechanisms aimed at protecting consumers as well as producers”The Court's auditors will travel to Spain, Italy, Greece and Belgium and the report is expected to be published by the end of 2025.
In fact, although olive oil is a fundamental ingredient for many European citizens, “Recent price spikes due to drought and heatwaves that have compromised crops have made it less accessible to consumers. For a product often called 'liquid gold' – writes the European Court of Auditors – These sharp price increases encourage fraud.”
Countering fraud and adulteration
Thus, “In the absence of robust systems for compliance and product labelling verification, the reputation of EU olive oil could be put at risk” and that is why the European Court of Auditors is currently conducting an audit to assess the proper functioning of EU control systems to ensure that olive oil is authentic, safe and accurately labelled.
This is not the first time the ECA has reviewed the olive oil sector. Over the past two decades, it has examined the relevant support schemes and, in subsequent reviews, has addressed the broader issues of food safety and labelling. In 2006, the ECA audited the functioning of the Geographical Information System (GIS) for olive growing, where it identified significant weaknesses. In a more recent report, the ECA addressed the issue of food labelling in the EU.
