Olive oil’s rising value has made it one of the food industry’s most targeted products for fraud — and 2026 reporting has put real numbers on the scale of the problem.
The scale of the problem
The EU’s Alert and Cooperation Network (ACN) recorded 130 official notifications related to olive oil in the most recent year on record, with 15% confirmed as cross-border fraud cases. Of the violations identified, 62% involved dilution with cheaper oils, 15% were mislabelling, and 10% were false claims of higher-grade quality — oils sold as “extra virgin” that didn’t meet the standard.
Recent enforcement action
Enforcement has followed. Portuguese authorities seized more than 16,000 litres of cooking oil falsely labelled as olive oil, along with 82,000 counterfeit labels. A joint investigation between Europol and 29 European countries led to the dismantling of 11 criminal networks and the issuing of 104 arrest warrants, with adulterated olive oil among the key findings.
FAQ
What’s the most common type of olive oil fraud? Dilution — blending genuine olive oil with cheaper vegetable oils — accounted for the majority of confirmed violations (62%), well ahead of mislabelling or false grade claims.
How can buyers protect themselves? Sourcing directly from verified mills and suppliers with traceable documentation, rather than through intermediaries with no visibility into origin, is the most effective safeguard against diluted or mislabelled product.
Source: Food Ingredients First, Europol