From July 1, 2016 any infringement of the rules in the commerce and sale of olive oil in Italy will be subject to new sanctions aiming to grant a wider protection to some of the characteristics of the product, such as its geographic origin.

The so called “Decree on the sanctions on olive oil” lists the sanctions for the breach of (EU) Regulation no. 29/2012 on the marketing of olive oil and (EEC). The new rule replaces previous Decree no. 225/2005 which will be repealed on July 1, 2016. 

The new Decree summarizes all the sanctions envisaged for all olive oil business operators who do not abide by current rules and compares new sanctions with those listed in the previous legislative decree. The table lists new categories of violations which were previously not sanctioned: among those that can imply a penalty, there is the lack or even the counterfeiting of the geographical indication of origin. In the event the breach is a crime, then criminal sanctions are also envisaged.

The Decree provides the application of sanctions for manufacturers who put “signs, symbols or illustrations which might recall a geographic origin which differs from the one stated on the label, although truthful”: for the first time, the so called “Country sounding” (in our case, the Italian sounding) is punished for the mere fact that the package shows signs recalling a geographical origin different from the one correctly stated on the label. The rule applies to all trademarks registered in Italy after Dec. 31, 1998 or in Europe as of May 31, 2002.

Vague or incomplete labels will face considerable repercussions. For instance, the former Decree didn’t provided sanctions for Absence of the geographic origin of oil or for Readability and grouping of information, while the new Decree indicates sanctions up to 12,000 euro.

Source: Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry website 

Our Labeling & Regulatory Division can support every company who needs support to align with the new rules.