EU quality labels in the Italian olive oil market: How much overlap is there between geographical indication and organic production?

ABSTRACT

In the early 1990s, the European Union established two main quality schemes: geographical indications (GIs) and organic production (OP). Despite the abundant literature on the EU quality schemes applied to many food categories, including extra virgin olive oil, in most studies, GIs and OP are analysed separately, under the assumption that they are independent. This study aims to prove that synergies exist between GIs and OP labels. We analysed EU labelling on GIs and organic attributes simultaneously using bivariate probit models, and also assessed the level of independence from each other. A survey was administered to Italian consumers to elicit their purchasing behaviour of olive oil. The results found a correlation between the two certifications, highlighting the promising use of both certifications for olive oil products.

KEYWORDS:

• Olive oil
• quality label
• organic farming
• geographical indication
• Italy

Acknowledgements

English editing was carried out by Adrian Wallwork. The authors are thankful for the valuable suggestions received by the anonymous reviewers and by the editor.

Additional information

Funding

This work has been supported by the EU through the Puglia Region: “Avviso aiuti a sostegno dei Cluster Tecnologici Regionali per l’Innovazione” – Progetto: “T.A.P.A.S.S. – Tecnologie Abilitanti per Produzioni Agroalimentari Sicure e Sostenibili” – codice PELM994.