Spanish Olive Oil Industry Battles Misinformation Amid Supply Chain Scrutiny

The controversy arose from videos pointing to the labels of bottles of the Carbonell, Hojiblanca and Koipe brands, dating from the 2022-2023 campaign. These mentioned an origin of the olives "inside and outside the European Union", which led to speculation about a Moroccan origin, recalls Euronews.

In the face of these accusations, the producer Deoleo has formally denied: Morocco is not among its suppliers. The company explained that, following a severe drought in Spain that year, it had to import oils from Tunisia, Chile and Argentina to supplement its production, hence the "non-EU" labeling. The situation has since returned to normal and, since August 2025, the production of these brands is again ensured exclusively with Spanish olives. To strengthen traceability, a QR code has even been added to some bottles to verify their origin.

Another rumor, concerning an imminent withdrawal of olive oil from the market, has also been clarified. This is actually a preventive regulation project of the Spanish government, not yet approved and intended solely to counter a possible future overproduction, the application of which is moreover considered unlikely by the agricultural organizations.