OIL – ok for transparency on labels

The meeting State-Regions gave way to the Secretary’s decree which has accepted, on a national scale, the new regulations on the extra-virgin olive oil labelling. This Administrative Decree, a notice clears up, better defines the already existing rules, dated back to last July, valid all over Europe. This Decree comes few days before the official opening of the oil campaign, while almost all over Italy the olives are being picked. The Decree better explains the way packages must be, the rules on the designation of origin of the product. It establishes that the indications on the label must match the supporting documents. The enterprises which package and bottle the product are now obliged to be recorded in a special register at the National Agriculture Information service; it shows the procedures to be adopted to identify the packaged, but not-yet labelled oil, still stored; besides it obliges these enterprises to have special load-unload registers of virgin and extra-virgin olive oils. It entrusts the Inspectorate for the Quality Control . The notice underlines that “the entry into force of this Decree is a key-tribute to shed the shadowed areas of the market of the olive oil efficaciously fighting frauds and sophistications”.