The European Commission (EC) has agreed to help the olive oil sector by providing a storage aid to private sector operators.
Good harvests and stock availability at European Union (EU) level have resulted in a discrepancy in supply and demand, which has led to a fall in olive oil prices in the EU market.
To help operators, the EC has announced a private storage aid for virgin olive oils.
Financial aid offered by the EC can be used by operators to store olive oil products for 180 days, which could help them fetch a better price for their products in the European market.
European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan said: “In the past months, the olive oil market has been going through serious market imbalance and I’m proud to say that once again the Common Agricultural Policy is here to support our farmers and producers.
“Thanks to our market measures, the private storage aid adopted today will help stabilise the market and prevent further damages to the sector.”
Over the last few months, the prices of olive oil in Spanish, Greek and Portuguese markets have significantly declined due to excess supply.
In comparison to the five-year average, the price of Spanish extra virgin olive oil in mid-October was 33% below, while the price of Greek virgin olive oil has gone down by 13.5%.
With this aid, the EC aims to ease some pressure and help in rebalancing the market.
EC noted that the aid will be offered in bulk for different types of virgin olive oils, including extra virgin and lampante olive oils.
