Beja, Portugal, Sept. 23, 2026 (Lusa) - Olive oil production in Portugal is expected to grow by almost 10% this year compared with last year, bringing figures close to those of the 2024/2025 season, the sector's largest national association estimated on Wednesday.
In a statement sent to the Lusa news agency, Olivum – the Association of Olive Growers and Oil Mills of Portugal – indicated that this growth may be due to «high temperatures» which will bring forward the «olive ripening» period.
«This development may lead some olive growers to start the harvest earlier, with the corresponding start-up of the mills,» said Gonçalo Moreira, project manager at Olivum, in the statement.
According to the association, if the forecast is confirmed, the 2026/2027 season should bring «the country closer to the benchmark figures recorded in the 2024/2025 season», i.e. around 177,000 tonnes.
«Following a previous season that totalled 160,000 tonnes of olive oil nationwide, forecasts for this year point to a recovery in the sector,» Olivum states.
Nevertheless, Moreira stresses that it is «still too early to draw conclusions about the season», though the focus is on maintaining «the sector's commitment to the excellent quality of Portuguese olive oil, reinforcing Portugal's position amongst the world's leading producers».
The association also warns that, despite the «positive outlook» for this year, it remains «attentive to changes in production costs, particularly those associated with fuel».
«In mainland Portugal, the average price of agricultural diesel has risen by around 60% and road diesel has increased by 40% compared with the same period last season; this price rise [is] an additional challenge the sector faces in managing the current season,» it states.
Based in Beja and established in 2013, Olivum is an association of olive growers and mills and aims to address new issues in olive cultivation, including the need to defend and represent the sector, which was virtually non-existent at the time.
This association represents more than 53,000 hectares of olive groves, 21 olive mills and around 70% of national olive oil production.
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