A study published in Chemistry Africa reveals that the local «Picholine» variety offers superior quality to Italian olives grown in Morocco. Its content of phenolic compounds and oleic acid clearly surpasses that of imported plants.
A Moroccan national was sentenced by the Audiencia of Ceuta after attempting to bribe a civil guard at the Tarajal border crossing. The man hoped to bring in a shipment of unauthorized food products in exchange for a simple 50-euro bill.
The record olive oil production in the Béni Mellal region has sparked unprecedented enthusiasm, but it has also been accompanied by a proliferation of counterfeiting networks. Authorities recently seized nine tonnes of toxic products and dismantled clandestine laboratories using chemical additives to deceive consumers.
The Moroccan olive oil campaign , boosted by exceptional yields, is experiencing an unprecedented delay due to rains and a labor shortage. This gap now threatens the biological rest of the trees before the flowering cycle in April.
Faced with several years of drought and a decline in its yields, the Moroccan olive oil sector is embarking on a spectacular recovery in its production for the 2025-2026 campaign. This rebound, driven by a 78% increase in volumes, allows the Kingdom to regain a position of strength within the Mediterranean basin after a cycle of water stress that was particularly trying for farmers.
The Moroccan Observatory for Consumer Protection has called on the National Office of Sanitary Safety of Food Products (ONSSA) to intensify its inspections following the seizure of more than nine tons of non-compliant olive oil . The organization stresses that the opening of 58 legal proceedings is a positive step, but remains insufficient given the scale of fraud in this strategic sector.
The National Office of Sanitary Safety of Food Products (ONSSA) has seized and destroyed 9 tons of non-compliant olive oil .
Despite an exceptional production exceeding two million tons for the 2025-2026 season, the Moroccan olive oil sector is facing a major paradox. While abundance has brought the price of a liter back to around 70 dirhams , the acute shortage of labor and the explosion of harvesting costs threaten the profitability of farms and the pace of processing.
As the olive harvest campaign is in full swing in Morocco, stalls are filling up with unlabeled and untraceable bottles of oil. This anarchic proliferation is of great concern to consumer associations, who point to major health risks and call on the authorities to outright ban informal sales.
This is news that will delight consumers, but gives cold sweats to farmers. While olive production is at record levels thanks to the autumn rains, causing the price of a liter of oil to drop between 50 and 60 dirhams , the sector is hit by an acute labor shortage that threatens to paralyze the harvest.
This is the dark side of green gold. While the olive crushing campaign is in full swing, the authorities have declared war on polluters. Mixed commissions are currently carrying out covert operations in several regions of the Kingdom to stop the illegal dumping of "margine", this toxic liquid that asphyxiates watercourses.
With a historic harvest of 2 million tons, Morocco is putting an end to the surge in olive oil prices that had reached 120 dirhams. This abundance immediately imposes a return to normal, stabilizing the liter around 50 dirhams.