Italian Minister Lollobrigida Urged to Launch Olive Oil Aid for Poor

Farm organisations Coldiretti, Unaprol and FOA Italia sent a letter to Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida asking for an extraordinary public procurement of extra‑virgin olive oil that is 100 % Italian to be distributed to indigent families. The proposal also includes a fund to support the liquidity of olive‑oil producers, which are facing high production costs and market imbalances.

The groups stress that any aid must be accompanied by rigorous scientific controls – such as nuclear magnetic resonance, isotopic analysis and genetic mapping – to guarantee the authenticity of the oil and prevent fraud. They note that Calabria, Italy’s second‑largest olive‑producing region, hosts about 84 000 farms, over 180 000 hectares of olive groves and roughly 25 million trees, underscoring the sector’s economic importance.

A spokesperson for Coldiretti warned that “the fight continues against those who deceive consumers with de‑coloured or chlorophyll‑added oils,” and urged the minister to act swiftly to protect both producers and consumers.