The lat­est infec­tion of four olive trees marks the north­ern­most detec­tion of Xylella fas­tidiosa in Italy’s south­ern Puglia region.

Farmers and millers from across the coun­try were awarded at a cer­e­mony in Perugia for the best Italian extra vir­gin olive oils.

Xylella fas­tidiosa, a deadly bac­terium, has been found in an olive tree in Bari, caus­ing con­cern for the region’s impor­tant olive oil indus­try.

The cul­tural prac­tice of pre­serv­ing fresh fruit and veg­eta­bles in olive oil has endured for cen­turies in Puglia and become increas­ingly pop­u­lar world­wide.

The Italian olive oil sec­tor hailed the raid as proof that author­i­ties can crack down on olive oil fraud while warn­ing that a lack of con­sumer aware­ness allows such crimes to per­sist.

Officials rebuffed a recent study that implied Xylella fas­tidiosa was not mainly respon­si­ble for the mil­lions of rav­aged trees.

The find­ings could unravel a decade of pol­icy and under­stand­ing that Xylella fas­tidiosa was the lead­ing cause of Olive Quick Decline Syndrome in Puglia.

The new vari­ant was detected in a region already severely affected by Xylella fas­tidiosa pauca.