Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Council of Members of the International Olive Council as regards the organoleptic assessment method for virgin olive oil
Date: 2026-05-28
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: commodity agreement, international organisation, marketing standard, multilateral agreement, olive, olive oil, quality control of agricultural products

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 28.5.2026  COM(2026) 254 final 2026/0129 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Council of Members of the International Olive Council as regards the organoleptic assessment method for virgin olive oil {SWD(2026) 133 final}  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

SUBJECT MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL 

This proposal concerns the decision establishing the position to be taken on the Union's behalf 
in the Council of Members of the International Olive Council ("IOC") in connection with the 
envisaged adoption at its next regular session of June 2026 of two decisions: the "Glass for oil 
tasting" and the “Guide for the installation of a taste room”, which are both pertaining to the 
organoleptic assessment method for virgin olive oil. 

2. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

2.1. 

The International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015 

The  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015  (‘the  Agreement’)  aims 
(i)°to  seek  to  achieve  uniformity  in  national  and  international  legislation  relating  to  the 
physico-chemical  and  organoleptic  characteristics  of  olive  oils,  olive-pomace  oils  and  table 
olives in order to prevent any obstacle to trade (ii) to conduct activities in the area of physico-
chemical  and  organoleptic  testing  in  order  to  add  to  the  knowledge  of  the  composition  and 
quality characteristics of olive products, with a view to consolidating international standards, 
and (iii) to strengthen the role of the International Olive Council as a forum of excellence for 
the international scientific community in the area of olives and olive oil. 

The renewed version of the Agreement entered into force on 1 January 2017. 
The European Union is a party to the Agreement1. 

2.2. 

The Council of Members 

The  Council  of  Members  of  the  International  Olive  Council  (“the  Council  of  Members”)  is 
the highest authority and decision-making organ of the IOC and shall exercise all such powers 
and functions as are necessary to achieve the objectives of this Agreement. As a party to the 
Agreement, the European Union is a member of the IOC and is represented in the Council of 
Members. The decisions of the Council of Members shall be taken by consensus. If consensus 
cannot  be  reached,  decisions  related  to  the  trade  standard  and  methods  would  be  adopted 
unless they are rejected by at least one quarter of the members or by a member or members 
with at least a total of 100 participation shares. 

There  are  currently  21  members  in  the  IOC  and  the  European  Union  has  647  participation 
shares out of a total of 1000. 

2.3. 

The envisaged act of the Council of Members 

In November 2025, the Executive Secretariat of the IOC presented to its Members the text of 
two  decisions  regarding  chemistry  and  standardisation.  The  decisions  are  both  pertaining  to 
the organoleptic assessment method for virgin olive oil: 

– 

– 

1 

Revision 3 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 5 "Glass for oil tasting"; 

Revision 2 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 6 on the guide for the installation of a 
taste room. 

Council Decision (EU) 2016/1892 of 10 October 2016 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, 
and provisional application of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015 (OJ L 
293,  28.10.2016,  p.  2)  and  Council  Decision  (EU)  2019/848  of  17  May  2019  on  the  conclusion  on 
behalf of the European Union of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015 (OJ 
L 139, 27.05.2019, p. 1); ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2016/1892/oj 

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The  Commission  Staff  Working  Document  accompanying  this  proposal  includes  the  text  of 
the revised documents, as presented by the Executive Secretariat. 

Pursuant to Article 20(3) of the Agreement, the quality and purity criteria included in the IOC 
Trade Standard for olive oil and olive-pomace oil are applicable to the international trade of 
the Members. Furthermore, pursuant to Article 75(5)(e) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of 
the European Parliament and of the Council2, the marketing standards shall take into account 
the  standard  recommendations  adopted  by  international  bodies.  Marketing  standards  are 
checked  by  rules  established  in  conformity  with  Article  90a  of  Regulation  (EU)  No 
1308/2013. The decisions on the revisions of these documents pertaining to the organoleptic 
assessment  method  for  virgin  olive  oil  have  an  impact  on  how  the  parameters  are  checked. 
Therefore,  the  above-mentioned  decisions  will  affect  the  applicable  EU  law,  namely 
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/2105 of 29 July 2022 laying down rules on 
conformity  checks  of  marketing  standards  for  olive  oil  and  methods  of  analysis  of  the 
characteristics of olive oil3. 

The position detailed in the present Decision is foreseen to be taken on behalf of the Union at 
the next regular IOC session, to take place in June 2026. 

3. 

POSITION TO BE TAKEN ON THE UNION'S BEHALF 

The  decisions  to  be  adopted  by  the  Council  of  Members  are  both  pertaining  to  the 
organoleptic assessment method for virgin olive oil: 

– 

– 

Revision 3 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 5 "Glass for oil tasting"; 

Revision 2 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 6 on the guide for the installation of a 
taste room. 

The above-mentioned decisions have been discussed between scientific and technical olive oil 
experts  of  the  Commission  and  Member  States.  They  contribute  to  the  international 
harmonisation  of  olive  oil  standards  and  will  set  a  framework  which  will  ensure  fair 
competition in the trading of olive oil. They should therefore be supported. 

The above-mentioned decisions are in line with the Union policy as regards standards for the 
marketing of agricultural products as provided for in Title II of part II of Regulation (EU) No 
1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council. 

A Union position is needed for the adoption of the decisions. 

4. 

LEGAL BASIS 

4.1. 

Procedural legal basis 

4.1.1. Principles 

Article 218(9) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides for 
decisions establishing ‘the positions to be adopted on the Union’s behalf in a body set up by 
an  agreement,  when  that  body  is  called  upon  to  adopt  acts  having  legal  effects,  with  the 
exception of acts supplementing or amending the institutional framework of the agreement.’ 

2 

3 

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 
establishing  a  common  organisation  of  the  markets  in  agricultural  products  and  repealing  Council 
Regulations (EEC)  No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ L 
347, 20.12.2013, p. 671); ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/1308/2023-01-01 
OJ L 284, 4.11.2022, p. 23–48; ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2022/2105/2022-11-04 

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The concept of ‘acts having legal effects’ includes acts that have legal effects by virtue of the 
rules of international law governing the body in question. It also includes instruments that do 
not  have  a  binding  effect  under  international  law,  but  that  are  ‘capable  of  decisively 
influencing the content of the legislation adopted by the EU legislature’4. 

4.1.2. Application to the present case 

The  Council  of  Members  is  a  body  set  up  by  an  agreement,  namely  the  International 
Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives. 

The acts which the Council of Members are called upon to adopt constitute acts having legal 
effects. The envisaged acts will be binding under international law in accordance with Article 
20(3)  of  the  Agreement  and  are  capable  of  decisively  influencing  the  content  of  EU 
legislation, namely an implementing act as regards conformity checks for olive oil marketing 
standards  based  on  Regulation  (EU)  No  1308/2013.  This  is  because,  pursuant  to  Article 
75(5)(e)  of  Regulation  (EU)  No  1308/2013,  the  marketing  standards  shall  take  into  account 
the standard recommendations adopted by international bodies. 

The  envisaged  act  does  not  supplement  or  amend  the  institutional  framework  of  the 
Agreement. 

Therefore, the procedural legal basis for the proposed decision is Article 218(9) TFEU. 

4.2. 

Substantive legal basis 

4.2.1. Principles 

The  substantive  legal  basis  for  a  decision  under  Article  218(9)  TFEU  depends  primarily  on 
the objective and content of the envisaged act in respect of which a position is taken on the 
Union's  behalf.  If the  envisaged act  pursues two  aims or has two components  and if one of 
those  aims  or  components  is  identifiable  as  the  main  one,  whereas  the  other  is  merely 
incidental, the decision under Article 218(9) TFEU must be founded on a single substantive 
legal basis, namely that required by the main or predominant aim or component. 

4.2.2. Application to the present case 

The main objective and content of the envisaged act relate to the common commercial policy. 
Therefore, the substantive legal basis of the proposed decision is Article 207(4) TFEU. 

4.3. 

Conclusion 

The legal basis of the proposed decision should be Article 207(4) TFEU, in conjunction with 
Article 218(9) TFEU. 

5. 

COMPLIANCE WITH THE DIGITAL BY DEFAULT PRINCIPLE 

The current proposal has no digital dimensions as there is no digital relevance. Digital means 
or data exchange are not under the scope of the proposal. 

4 

Judgment  of 
ECLI:EU:C:2014:2258, paragraphs 61 to 64. 

the  Court  of  Justice  of  7  October  2014,  Germany  v  Council,  C-399/12, 

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2026/0129 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Council of Members 
of the International Olive Council as regards the organoleptic assessment method for 
virgin olive oil 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 207(4), first subparagraph, in conjunction with Article 218(9) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, 2015 (‘the Agreement’) 
was concluded on behalf of the Union by Council Decision (EU) 2019/8481. 

Pursuant to Article 20 of the Agreement, the Council of Members of the International 
Olive  Council  (IOC)  (‘the  Council  of  Members’)  may  take  decisions  and  adopt 
recommendations for the application of the provisions of the Agreement. 

The  Council  of  Members  is  to  adopt  two  decisions  concerning  the  organoleptic 
assessment method for virgin olive oil at its 123rd session in June 2026. 

Those  decisions  have  been  extensively  discussed  between  scientific  and  technical 
experts  on  olive  oil  of  the  Commission  and  of  the  Member  States.  The  decisions 
should  contribute  to  the  international  harmonisation  of  olive  oil  standards  and  will 
establish a framework which should ensure fair competition in the trading of products 
in  the  olive  oil  sector.  The  Union  should  therefore  support  the  adoption  of  those 
decisions. 

It is appropriate to establish the position to be taken on behalf of the Union within the 
Council of Members, as the decisions to be adopted by the IOC will have legal effects 
on the Union as regards international trade with the other members of the IOC and will 
influence the content of Union law, namely on conformity checks for olive oil adopted 
by the Commission pursuant to Article 90a of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the 
European Parliament and of the Council2. 

(6) 

If  the  adoption  of  the  decisions  is  postponed  for  an  exchange  of  correspondence  to 
take place before the 124th regular session of the Council of Members, as a result of 

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Council Decision (EU) 2019/848 of 17 May 2019 on the conclusion on behalf of the European Union of 
the  International  Agreement  on  Olive  Oil  and  Table  Olives,  2015  (OJ  L  139,  27.05.2019,  p.  1,  ELI: 
http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2019/848/oj). 
Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 
establishing  a  common  organisation  of  the  markets  in  agricultural  products  and  repealing  Council 
Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 (OJ L 
347, 20.12.2013, p. 671, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/1308/2023-01-01). 

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(7) 

(8) 

some  Members  not  being  in  a  position  to  give their  approval,  the  position  set  out  in 
this Decision should be taken on behalf of the Union by exchange of correspondence. 

It should, however, be possible for the representatives of the Union in the Council of 
Members to agree to technical adaptations to other methods or documents of the IOC 
without  further  decision  of  the  Council  if  those  technical  adaptations  result  from 
amendments related to the revisions of those two documents. 

In order to preserve the interest of the Union, the representatives of the Union in the 
Council  of  Members  should  however  be  allowed  to  request  the  postponement  of  the 
adoption of those decisions, if the position to be taken on behalf of the Union is likely 
to  be  affected  by  new  scientific  or  technical  information  presented  before  the  124th 
regular session of the Council of Members, 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

Article 1 

The  Union  shall  support  the  adoption  of  two  decisions  concerning  the  organoleptic 
assessment method for virgin olive oil: 

– 

– 

Revision 3 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 5 on the "Glass for oil tasting"; 

Revision 2 of document COI/T.20/Doc. No. 6 on the guide for the installation of a 
taste room. 

by the Council of Members of the International Olive Council (IOC) at its next regular session 
in  June  2026  or  in  an  exchange  of  correspondence  to  take  place  before  the  124th  regular 
session. 

Article 2 

The  representatives  of  the  Union  in  the  Council  of  Members  of  the  IOC  may  agree  to 
technical  adaptations  to  other methods or documents  of the  IOC  without further decision of 
the Council if those technical adaptations result from the amendments to the two documents 
referred to in Article 1. 

Article 3 

Where  the  position  referred  to  in  Article  1  is  likely  to  be  affected  by  new  scientific  or 
technical  information  presented  before  the  next  regular  session  of  the  IOC  Council  of 
Members, the representatives of the Union shall request that the adoption of those decisions 
be  postponed  until  the  position  of  the  Union  is  established  on  the  basis  of  that  new 
information. 

This Decision is addressed to the Commission. 

Done at Brussels, 

Article 4 

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For the Council 
The President 

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