COMMUNICATION OF APPROVAL OF A STANDARD AMENDMENT

(Article 24 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143)

‘ Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià/Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià’

EU reference number: PDO-ES-0274-AM01 – 31.7.2025

1.   Name of product

‘Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià/Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià’

2.   Geographical indication type

☐

PGI

☑

PDO

☐

GI

3.   Sector

☑	Agricultural products

☐

Wines

☐	Spirit drinks

4.   Country to which the geographical area belongs

Spain

5.   Member State authority communicating the standard amendment

Name

Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food – Government of Catalonia

6.   Qualification as standard amendment

This qualifies as a standard amendment as the three changes do not affect the protected name or the link, nor do they lead to increased restrictions on trade in the product.

7.   Description of the approved standard amendment(s)

Title

Reduction of maximum acidity

Description

A change in the table of the physico-chemical characteristics of the olive oil covered by the PDO, which appears in section B (Description of the product) of the specification and section 3.2 of the single document.

The maximum acidity of the oil has been reduced from 0,80 % to 0,60 %.

Based on the experience gained and the large number of samples analysed in recent years, the decision was taken to lower the accepted maximum acidity values.

☑	The amendment affects the single document.

Title

Deletion of the K232 parameter

Description

The K232 parameter has been deleted as a specific quality parameter for the PDO. It has been decided to increase the maximum permitted value of K232 (currently 2,0) to bring it into line with the maximum laid down in European legislation (currently 2,5). It is thus no longer a specific requirement for PDO olive oil and has consequently been removed from the table of physico-chemical characteristics.

On the basis of experience gained, the decision was made to amend the K232 value, which is a parameter that gauges the degree of oxidation of the oil and how it develops. It is thus a parameter that has more to do with the storage conditions of the oil than with the production process. This is why it was considered appropriate to replace K232 with another quality parameter in the table of physico-chemical characteristics: the ethyl ester content.

☑	The amendment affects the single document.

Title

Addition of an ‘ethyl ester’ parameter

Description

Ethyl ester content has been added as a physico-chemical quality indicator; this is another quality parameter which is closely linked to the presence of fermentation processes in the olives. The limit is set at 30 mg/kg, which is lower than the maximum currently set by European regulations on marketing standards for olive oil, which provides for a maximum of 35 mg/kg for extra virgin olive oils.

Concentrations of ethyl esters are indicative of fermentation processes in the olives. They are therefore relevant to the production of quality olive oil. It is a better parameter for assessing the production process for a quality product, both in the olive grove – where there is a need to obtain very healthy olives – and in terms of how fast the processing is carried out in the mill.

☑	The amendment affects the single document.

Title

Deletion of the ‘Legal requirements’ section

Description

The amendment to the product specification has provided an opportunity to delete the ‘Legal requirements’ section as it is not mandatory under Regulation (EU) 2024/1143.

☐	The amendment affects the single document.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

Designations of origin and geographical indications of agricultural products

‘Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià/Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià’

EU reference number: PDO-ES-0274-AM01 – 31.7.2025

1.   Name(s)

‘Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià/Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià’

2.   Geographical indication type

☑

PDO

☐

PGI

☐

GI

3.   Country to which the defined geographical area belongs

Spain

4.   Description of the agricultural product

4.1.   Classification of the agricultural product in accordance with the Combined Nomenclature heading and code, as referred to in Article 6(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143

1509 20 – Extra virgin olive oil

4.2.   Description of the agricultural product to which the registered name applies

Extra virgin olive oil obtained from the fruit of the olive tree of the species Olea Europaea L., of the following three native varieties: Morruda or Morrut, Sevillenca and Farga, with extraction taking place by mechanical or other physical processes that do not alter the oil, but preserve the flavour, fragrance and characteristics of the fruit from which it is obtained.

The three varieties are native to the geographical area of the PDO and are only occasionally found in the neighbouring districts.

The product has the following characteristics:

Organoleptic properties:

Appearance – Clean, transparent, with no cloudiness or turbidity

Colour – This varies depending on the time of harvest and the geographical location within the production area, from greenish yellow to golden yellow.

Taste – The olives are tasty (medium bitter, pungent and astringent) and very aromatic (rich in secondary, green aromas), with a fruity flavour at the beginning of the crop year, developing a slight sweetness as the year progresses.

Minimum score of the tasting panel – 6,5

Physical and chemical properties:

Acidity – ≤ 0,60

Peroxide value (mEq O2/kg) – ≤ 18

K270 – ≤ 0,20

Moisture and volatile substances (%) – ≤ 0,20

Impurities (%) – ≤ 0,10

Ethyl esters (mg/kg) – ≤ 30

4.3.   Derogations on sourcing of feed (for products of animal origin designated by a protected designation of origin only) and restrictions on sourcing of raw materials (for processed products designated by a protected geographical indication only)

–

4.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

The olives must be grown and the product processed solely within the geographical area defined in point 4.

4.5.   Specific rules concerning packaging, slicing, grating etc. of the agricultural product the registered name refers to

It is essential that the olive oil is packaged in the geographical area of production described in point 4.

The aim is to guarantee the origin and inherent quality of the oil by avoiding transportation in bulk outside the production area. PDO olive oil is a product which is very sensitive to foreign substances that lead to changes and alterations such as oxidation. This type of transport would result in the oil being subject to unsuitable environmental conditions that might affect its sensory characteristics.

4.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the agricultural product the registered name refers to

The name of the designation ‘Aceite del Baix Ebre-Montsià’ (in Spanish) or ‘Oli del Baix Ebre-Montsià’ (in Catalan) must be displayed on the packaging, along with the words ‘Protected Designation of Origin’ or ‘PDO’ in addition to the information of a general nature required in the relevant legislation.

4.7.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The production area comprises land located in the districts of Baix Ebre and Montsià, which are both in the province of Tarragona, located at the southernmost point of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, bordering the districts of Baix Maestrat (province of Castellón) and Matarraña (province of Teruel).

The following municipalities are thus included in this geographical area:

Baix Ebre – Aldea, Aldover, Alfara de Carles, Ametlla de Mar, Ampolla, Benifallet, Camarles, Deltebre, Paüls, Perelló, Roquetes, Tivenys, Tortosa and Xerta.

Montsiá – Alclanar, Amposta, Freginals, La Galera, Godall, Mas de Barberans, Masdenverge, Sant Carles de la Rápita, Sant Jaume d’Enveja, Santa Barbara, La Sénia and Ulldecona.

5.   Link with the geographical area

Summary of the link

The link between the oil and the geographical area is based on the long history of olive cultivation and oil production in the area, as well as on the geographical area’s natural particularities.

Historically: The origin of olive groves in Catalonia and particularly in the districts of Baix Ebre and Montsià must be attributed to the Arabs. Indeed, one of the names in Spanish for an olive oil mill (‘almazara’) is clearly a word of Arabic origin.

In the fourteenth century, agriculture in the districts of Baix Ebre and Montsià was based on olive and vine growing, as demonstrated by the prolific historian Enric Bayerri in his Historia de Tortosa y su comarca (‘History of Tortosa and its District’). Bayerri mentions an official inventory of assets returned in 1353 by the villagers of the area ‘where most declared an olive grove, a vineyard, or both’. Vines, carob and especially olive groves, often in combination, provided the main activity in the area and covered virtually all the land. It should be noted that Tortosa is the capital of the district of Baix Ebre, as it is now known.

Enric Bayerri’s ‘History of Tortosa and its District’ (1958) also mentions that ‘in early 1931 there were 1 135 oil mills in Tortosa and the villages of the district, with a combined milling output of 83 626 042 kg of olives, equating to an average of 126 323 kg per mill’. This would be the equivalent of producing a total of 16,6 tonnes of oil, with an average of 25 000 kg per mill.

In his works El aceite de oliva de España (‘Olive oil in Spain’) (1961) and El problema del aceite virgen de oliva (‘The problem of virgin olive oil’) (1967) Daniel Mangrané praises the quality of oils from the district of Baix Ebre. These books underscore ‘Tortosa’s vast olive oil market, which was the first area to produce and market fine olive oils, and where there were nineteen established traders dealing exclusively in oil, which was sold both to the Spanish and to the French’. In addition, the quality of the olive oils prompted the master oil-makers to set up a school, advising other towns in the art of oil-making ‘since the best oil was from this area, they taught the method of production in Toledo, Lower Aragon and the province of Lérida’.

The Estación Olivarera (olive centre) in Tortosa and the technical centre for olive-growing and oil production date from this period. In the foreword to a published work on olive oil production, the Director of these centres, engineer Isidro Aguiló, draws attention to the ‘world-wide reputation of oils from Baix Ebre, the first district in Spain to develop oil-production techniques at low temperatures, and the long tradition of oil production which forms a background for widespread olive-growing, especially around Tortosa, Roquetes and adjoining areas’. These centres were world-famous in the olive-oil sector at the time, thanks to the many reports and studies they produced, and to their participation in congresses (e.g. the international olive-growing congress in Rome).

From a natural perspective, the features of the natural environment of the area together with the local varieties of the geographical area defined in the PDO, Morruda or Morrut, Sevillenca and Farga, make their mark on the characteristics of the oil.

They do so as follows: the soil characteristics, in particular the low nutrient content, along with the climate of the area, especially the wind, which is a distinguishing climatic factor (the dry and persistent ‘dalt’ or ‘mistral’ winds that are strong in autumn and winter, channelled by the Ebro depression and accelerated by the relief of the area), puts strain on the growth of the olive trees, boosting the percentage of polyphenols in the fruit. This results in a distinctive oil, rich in green secondary aromas and with a moderately astringent, bitter and pungent taste.

Electronic (URL) reference to the publication of the product specification

https://agricultura.gencat.cat/web/.content/al_alimentacio/al02_qualitat_alimentaria/normativa-dop-igp/plecs-vigor/pliego-condiciones-dop-aceite_baix_ebre-montsia_modificacion1_normal_2025-ES.pdf

---

(1)  Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/27 of 30 October 2024 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council with rules concerning the registration and the protection of geographical indications, traditional specialities guaranteed and optional quality terms and repealing Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014 (OJ L, 2025/27, 15.1.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2025/27/oj).