Spanish Olive Growers Push for Reform as Production Costs Jump 57%

Spain’s largest federation of olive oil cooperatives says cultivation costs have jumped 57 percent over the past six years while farm-gate prices keep falling, and it is calling on Madrid and Brussels to reform the rules that govern how growers get paid.

Cooperativas Agro-alimentarias de Andalucía, which represents more than 342,000 members across nearly every agri-food cooperative in Andalusia — the region that produces roughly 75 percent of Spain’s olive oil — issued the warning on September 2, 2026. Citing new data from the Spanish Association of Olive-Growing Municipalities (AEMO), the federation said production costs in the most traditional, labor-intensive groves now reach as much as €5.31 per kilogram of oil, even as farm-gate prices stay depressed.

Growers Say Spain’s Food Chain Law Isn’t Working

The federation argues that Spain’s Food Chain Law, designed to protect farmers’ bargaining position, has failed to keep pace with the pressures squeezing olive growers. According to the group, producers have little influence over the prices processors and retailers pay them, even as demand for Spanish olive oil remains strong: July shipments reached an estimated 135,312 tons, nearly 20,000 tons above the five-year average for that month, while national stocks fell by more than 113,000 tons to about 568,700 tons by July 31. Tunisian Olive Oil Trade tracks these kinds of Mediterranean supply and demand shifts closely, since tightening stocks in one major producing country typically pushes international buyers to diversify sourcing.

A Push for Tighter Oversight of Imports From Outside the EU

Beyond legal reform, the federation is asking Spanish and EU authorities to strengthen oversight of olive oil entering the bloc from third countries, including shipments moving through duty-free tariff quotas and the inward-processing regime. The group argues that weak controls on these mechanisms let some imports exert artificial downward pressure on the prices paid to EU producers.

Tunisia’s own olive oil trade with the European Union operates under its own preferential tariff-quota arrangement, so this renewed scrutiny in Madrid and Brussels is a trend worth watching for Tunisian exporters and their buyers alike — even though it’s aimed mainly at closing loopholes and mislabeling risk rather than restricting legitimate, properly certified trade. Buyers sourcing Tunisian olive oil should prioritize suppliers who can provide clean export documentation and verifiable country-of-origin certification, which protects against exactly the kind of scrutiny Spain’s cooperatives are now demanding.

FAQ

Why are Spanish olive oil producers calling for legal reform in 2026? Because cultivation costs have risen about 57 percent over six years — reaching as much as €5.31 per kilogram in traditional groves — while farm-gate prices remain low, and the cooperative federation Cooperativas Agro-alimentarias de Andalucía says Spain’s Food Chain Law isn’t protecting growers’ margins.

Could this affect olive oil buyers outside Spain? Yes — the same federation is pushing the EU to tighten oversight of olive oil imported from third countries under duty-free quotas, a policy conversation that buyers sourcing from countries like Tunisia should track, since it could affect documentation requirements even for legitimate, properly certified trade.

Source: Olive Oil Times