International News/Trends

The Extra Virgin Olive Oil Savantes program is heading to New York, with the organisation’s inaugural North American event being held in Manhattan from 26-28 September this year.
Promoting excellence in the evaluation of extra virgin olive oils and their culinary use, the three-day Savantes program provides tastings of oils from around the world, all judged best in major competitions. Sessions also discuss current market conditions and health benefits, and provide valuable industry networking opportunities. Places are also available for the 2012 Melbourne program on July 25-27.

Farm to Farm Tours is running a tour to California and Tuscany to see how olive oil producers and processors in the ‘New’ and ‘Old’ Worlds are meeting current industry challenges. The tour balances technical visits and sightseeing, and includes attendance at one of the world’s largest olive oil events in Tuscany. There are also plenty of opportunities to enjoy the wines, cheeses and regional specialties along the way. Dates are 27 March – 13 April 2013. More information from Farm to Farm Tours via [email protected]. or toll free 0800 3838747.

Financial distress and political turmoil persists in Greece. And now a Greek exit from the euro is what everyone is buzzing about these days. However, there are numerous actions Greece can take to help turnaround its desperate financial position. Earlier this year, consulting firm McKinsey & Co. published a study titled Greece 10 Years Ahead: Defining Greece’s New Growth Model and Strategy, a new growth plan for the financially beleaguered country. Among other things, McKinsey argues that Greece needs to be more involved in processing foods that currently leave its country as low margin unfinished goods. Greece has some of the most amazing food commodities in the world. However, it lacks the capacity to process it and sell it at high profit margins.

The major region of olive oil production region in the world, Jaén is home to over 65 million olive trees which are currently flowering, resulting in serious consequences for those with allergies in the province.
Extreme pollen counts have been recorded of more than 2,000 grains per cubic metre. Aggravation for allergy sufferers usually begins at about 50 grains, so this abnormally high level is causing extreme reactions in sensitized people living in the area.

The Italian police on Monday uncovered a fraud operation that doctored cheap oil to sell it as extra virgin olive oil, local media reported. According to the reports, 17 people were put under investigation on fraud-related charges, and three commercial operations were brought under observation in the central regions of Tuscany, Emilia Romagna and Lazio. Police confiscated 5,000L of counterfeit oil kept in silos, and other 2,500L in garages where the fraudulent oil was being bottled, with an overall estimated market value of over 500,000 euro (US$630,000), local news agency Ansa said.

European Commissioner for Agriculture Dacian Cioloş has promised tighter scrutiny of olive oil labels, on being questioned by Olive Oil Times about seeming flaws in the current system. European Commission (EC) olive oil marketing laws already provide for checks on label accuracy and require EU member states to report annually on details including how many label verification requests they have received, and their outcomes.

Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year has given market research specialist Mintel the excuse to look at how consumers’ eating habits have changed since its first-ever report in 1972 – revealing how much more sophisticated the nation’s tastes have become. Many of what are now store cupboard essentials, for instance, were considered exotic 40 years ago. Then, just 16% of Brits had bought olive oil in the previous three months, while today over half are regular purchasers. Similarly, garlic and tomato puree were rarely seen in the British shopping basket, but now they are used by almost half of us. Sales of curry powder, on the other hand, are on the wane.