Tuscany’s 2026 Olive Harvest Starts Early, But Rising Costs Could Push Prices Higher

Tuscany’s olive harvest is already underway this year, weeks ahead of its usual late-September start, after growers in Val di Cornia reported healthy, largely fly-free olives thanks to a warm summer — but industry leaders warn that a bigger 2026 crop won’t necessarily mean cheaper extra virgin olive oil.

The early start was confirmed on September 24, 2026 by Paolo Di Gaetano, a Val di Cornia producer and vice president of the Consorzio di tutela dell’olio toscano IGP, speaking to the Italian daily La Nazione. Growers across Tuscany are picking a crop that early indicators suggest will exceed 2025 volumes, with minimal olive fruit fly damage this season.

A Bigger Crop, But Higher Costs

Despite the promising harvest conditions, rising costs for diesel, labor and electricity are squeezing producer margins across the region. Farm-gate prices in the Siena marketplace were already trading around €12 per kilogram in mid-September 2026, and industry figures expect prices to stay firm — or climb further — even as volumes increase. For a market used to reading bigger harvests as a signal of falling prices, Tuscany’s 2026 season is a reminder that input costs, not just olive counts, now drive what buyers pay for genuine, PGI-certified Tuscan oil.

Coldiretti Toscana Pushes Back Against Olive Oil Fraud

Letizia Cesani, president of Coldiretti Toscana, said a larger harvest alone won’t guarantee better returns for growers, pointing to market manipulation by so-called “oil traffickers” who blend or mislabel lower-grade oil as premium Tuscan product. She called for stricter labeling rules, tighter port controls on imported oil, and stronger trademark protections for the Toscano IGP designation. According to Ismea-Qualivita data cited in the report, Toscano IGP oil generated €32 million in production value and €41 million in exports in 2024, underlining how much is at stake for the region’s certified producers. For international buyers who currently rely on Italian PGI oils, rising EU production costs and Tuscany’s own anti-fraud push are good reasons to also evaluate competitively priced, quality-verified Tunisian extra virgin olive oil — especially since Tunisia’s own 2026/27 harvest is not expected until November, giving buyers a natural window to compare old-crop and new-crop pricing side by side.

FAQ

When does the 2026 olive harvest start in Tuscany?
Tuscany’s 2026 olive harvest began earlier than usual in mid-to-late September, in areas like Val di Cornia, after a warm summer sped up ripening and left olives largely free of fruit fly damage.

Will Tuscan olive oil get cheaper because of a bigger 2026 harvest?
Not necessarily — Coldiretti Toscana warns that rising diesel, labor and electricity costs mean prices could stay high or rise further even with a larger crop, with farm-gate prices already around €12 per kilogram in mid-September 2026.

Source: La Nazione