Spain has strengthened its olive oil traceability system with new rules to improve oversight of domestic shipments and imports and exports of olive oil and olive pomace oil.
The measures amend quality regulations introduced in 2021, strengthening obligations for operators involved in transporting, receiving and importing olive oil.
We are not starting again, but improving a tool that has placed Spain at the forefront of olive oil traceability.
“In the last five years, we have learned a great deal from the operation of REMOA and have identified some areas that could be improved,” the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) told Olive Oil Times.
Spain introduced REMOA, its electronic registry for tracking movements of olive oil and olive pomace oil, in 2021 as part of a broader overhaul of the country’s olive oil quality regulations.
According to MAPA, the new measures are intended to improve the accuracy and reliability of information recorded throughout the supply chain, particularly for bulk shipments and imports from countries outside the European Union.
Under the original regulations, operators had to report bulk oil movements to the electronic system before shipment, and documents identifying the product had to accompany each shipment.
Five years into the system, its application revealed gaps in the information available to inspectors. Some shipments remained recorded as dispatched without delivery confirmation, analytical documents were not consistently incorporated into the registry, and uncertainty persisted over which operators were responsible for reporting certain imports.
The new Royal Decree 808/2026 addresses three areas identified as requiring improvement.
It introduces a clearer definition of the final recipient of imported olive oil, identifying the operator responsible for ensuring that shipments entering Spain from third countries or other E.U. member states carry the required documentation.
For bulk shipments destined for other E.U. member states, third countries, or industries outside the olive oil sector, the operator holding the oil at the time of dispatch remains responsible for notifying REMOA.
Operators must now upload analytical reports or equivalent signed documents to REMOA when registering bulk oil movements. Previously, these documents accompanied shipments but were not necessarily incorporated into the electronic registry.
Recipients must also confirm the arrival of bulk oil shipments and verify that deliveries correspond to the information previously reported. This allows movements to be formally completed rather than remaining open without delivery confirmation.
However, confirming receipt does not mean that the recipient has accepted the oil as compliant with quality requirements or other applicable regulations. The obligation is to record the delivery and verify it matches the declared information, not to certify the oil’s quality.
“Until now, we could have information about the departure of an oil shipment without always having confirmation that the movement had been completed,” the Ministry explained.
Incorporating analytical documentation into REMOA will also give inspectors direct access to information supporting each shipment’s declared classification.
The changes will require businesses handling bulk olive oil to provide more detailed documentation and account for shipments received, particularly those arriving from outside the European Union.
The regulation also allows authorities to treat documents equivalent to analytical reports as evidence when assessing risks and planning inspections.
By closing these gaps, Spanish authorities expect to get a clearer picture of how olive oil moves through the supply chain and strengthen their ability to verify its traceability and declared classification.
“We are not starting again, but improving a tool that has placed Spain at the forefront of olive oil traceability,” the Ministry concluded.