Italian farmers have suffered so badly from pests and adverse weather in recent months that many are reporting harvests 40 to 50 percent down from those of 2013.
Southern Europe—mainly Spain and Italy—usually produces 75 percent of the world’s olive oil. In 2014, production in Italy fell by one-third to 302,500 tonnes, the lowest level since 1991. Pietro Sandali, head of the Italian olive growers’ consortium, Unaprol, commented, ‘This is the worst year in living memory.’
Europe’s olive trees are at severe risk for olive leaf scorch, which is caused by Xylella fastidiosa, a killer pathogen that has taken root in southern Italy and is highly likely to spread, according to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The bacterium kills by stopping water movement in trees, causing the leaves to die and fall off, then the branches.
Olive leaf scorch is a pathogen rife in America and the Middle East. It is believed to have arrived in Europe by insects carried on plant commodities. Olive leaf scorch has already taken hold in Puglia, where 8,000 hectares of olive trees are diseased, and its increase in recent months has caused serious concern that Xylella could spread from that region.
In November 2014, the European Commission earmarked 751,000 euro towards combatting Xylella in Italy: the Italian government matched the amount. The Commission is currently assessing the situation to decide whether extra measures are required to contain the outbreak, and the possibility of new funding to fight the bacteria will be considered at a European Union meeting on January 19–20.
The disease is the final straw in a particularly bad period for Southern European olive growers, who have dealt with pests and extreme, unseasonal weather. Consumers are already hearing warnings of rises in olive oil prices.
