Spain Debates EU-Morocco Olive Oil Trade Agreement Amid Social Media Controversy

"Since yesterday, Moroccan olive oil can enter any country of the European Union without any problem. It is exempt from the payment of customs duties and there is no quota for its exports to the Community. In practice, it is as if it were another member of the European Union as regards the trade in olive oil and many other agricultural products," says the message that has been circulating on social networks since July.

This "since yesterday" at the beginning of the message makes it timeless, making it look like the measure is recent. But in reality, it is a hoax, because Moroccan olive oil has been authorized to enter the EU duty-free since February 2012 when the European Union and Morocco signed a trade agreement to that effect.

The authors of this fake news sometimes attach a video on the subject, which dates back to October 2012, the year the EU-Morocco agreement was signed and the subject was topical. Their goal is to try to justify the current rise in the price of olive oil by these facilities granted to Morocco by the EU 11 years ago. Since 2012, the agreement has not been modified, El Economista points out, specifying that Moroccan olive oil exported to the EU is subject to the same sanitary and phytosanitary requirements as olive oil produced in Europe.