Good news for the Italian olive oil industry. In a period when previous poor harvests in Italy had driven up international prices to their highest levels since 2006, 2015 seems to be giving a much more positive crop for Italian producers, according to national sources.
The first estimates released by the Italian Ministry of agricultural, food and forestry policies confirmed an expected production of 350,000 tons. Sales of one of Italy’s flagship agricultural exports, olive oil, fell during the first five months of 2015 as the industry felt the effects of a bad crop, disease, and cheaper prices of rival vegetable oils, such as soy, on the international markets. But this year, the National Organization of Olive Oil Tasters (ONAOO) which is part of the Italian Union of Chambers of Commerce, forecast a positive harvest, both for quantity and quality of the olives, where Italy’s rich biodiversity will be fully represented once again.
According to Ismea, the Italian institute for agricultural and food market services, “Overall, no phytosanitary problems have been reported, after the heavy olive fly attack of last year. There is an ideal condition both regarding olive oil yield and the quality of the product”.
While Italian extra virgin olive oil quality seems to be assured this season, the quantity will not be extremely high. As the harvesting operations go on, some regional estimates are beginning to pull back, mainly due to productions lower than expected. Apulia is expected to produce 30 percent more than last year, yet this is an 8 percent fall compared to its average annual production, according to the forecasts, with an estimated production of 18,739 tons. Totals are expected to better last year’s by 50 percent in Bari (Apulia’s main town), 40 percent in Brindisi and Foggia, 35 percent in the province of Taranto and a 20 percent in the Barletta-Andria-Trani area.