At the Fiesta del Primer Aceite in Úbeda on Saturday, Agriculture Minister Luis Planas defended a mandatory storage order as a way to safeguard growers’ returns. The measure covers about 188,000 tonnes of olive oil in the 2026/2027 campaign. Mills will keep part of their production off the market, rather than receive a consumer-price subsidy.
A resolution published by the Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) requires mills to keep 12% of production temporarily off the market. The rule applies to production declared from November 2026; it excludes oil produced in October and output from earlier campaigns. The obligation applies to campaign production declarations, not all the oil a mill physically holds. Mills may store the oil in their own facilities or elsewhere, and must keep it there until 30 September 2027 unless the conditions change.
Planas said technical work determined the share of oil to withhold to prevent a fall in prices received by producers. He called the intervention necessary and said Spanish and European legislation provides for it. Agricultural policy in Andalusia has also included crop-protection work, such as the Almería pepper trial; that experiment addressed thrips, not olive-oil prices.
The minister said the measure was designed to leave supermarket prices unchanged, but warned traders not to use the withdrawal to justify increases. In remarks translated from Spanish, he said: “No one should take advantage of this situation to speculate and raise prices.” He added that the Government would monitor the market to prevent abuses.
The order can be revised. From 31 December 2026, the Ministry will reassess production forecasts and demand, while also reviewing market prices. It may then reduce the volume required to remain in storage. Planas said the review should be approached calmly.
