Industry News

There’s just one more week left for public comment on the draft Australian Table Olive Standard, prepared by the National Table Olive Committee (NTOC). The Standard will apply to all table olive products, whether from Australian or international sources for wholesale or retail trade in Australia,and will initially be voluntary and incorporated into the AOA Code of Practice. The draft document is currently open for comment prior to publication by RIRDC and implementation later in 2012. Comments and submissions on the draft Standard are invited from all interested parties, and should be forwarded to NTOC convenor Peter McFarlane via post: 33 Phillips St, Somerton Park SA 5044; fax: (08) 8376 7048 or email: [email protected]. Download the Standard www.australianolives.com.au and for further information or clarification contact Peter on 0418 839 836. Deadline for submissions is 5pm on Friday, 10 August 2012 – don’t miss your chance to input into this important industry action.

Enrolment is now open for the 1st Southern Hemisphere Olive Oil Championship, the ANZSA Awards 2012. Held in Australia in conjunction with the 7th ARMONIA International Olive Oil Competition, the ANZSA competition is open to all olive growers, olive oil producers, processors and bottlers in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Winners will be entered into the international final of the ARMONIA-ALMA Trophy and the selection process for the “World’s 100 Most Outstanding Extra Virgin Olive Oils”. Closing date for applications and oil samples is 7 September, 2012. Download rules and application forms https://www.oliveoilagency.org/2012-03-07-18-48-22/southern-hemisphere-olive-oil-championship or go to www.oliveoilagency.org for more information.

It’s time to get your entries in for the coveted Olive Grove of the Year Award, presented by the AOA and The Olive Centre. The award aims to: reward and recognise olive growers who have been successful in improving olive growing operations; promote continual improvement in sustainable olive growing and production of high quality olive oil and/or table olives; and inspire producers through the shared experience of improvement and excellence in olive growing. Judging is undertaken using a wide and varied set of criteria, from the nature of the grove, yields and quality to improvements in sustainability management practices. Closing date for entries is 1 October 2012. More information and applications https://www.australianolives.com.au/blog-detail/olive-grove-of-the-year-2012.

Tasmanian olive growers are counting their blessings after a bumper harvest. Tasmanian Olive Council president Geoff Price said some growers were reporting twice as much fruit compared with last year.
Mr Price said the industry was still modest in size, with as many as 20 serious growers producing as much as 150 tonnes of raw fruit, worth more than $1 million. He said virtually all of it was processed into olive oil.

Several bursaries are now open for nomination:
• Peter Olsen Fellowship Award for young farmers 18-35 – $8000 grant to provide further development of personal and professional skills, to the benefit of their business and industry.
• Rural Youth Bursary for rural persons 18-30 – $5000 grant as sponsorship towards pursuing further study in a career to the benefit of the community.
• Applicants for the Rural Youth Bursary and Peter Olsen Fellowship will be considered for the Australian Year of the Farmer 2012 Award (AYOF) – $1500 grant to provide the opportunity to share their knowledge and experience with other young people at the AYOF farming expo.
Nominations for all awards close 17 August 2012 and winners will be announced at the Agricultural Bureau Spirit of Excellence Awards in Kimba on 10th September. More information from Yvonne Correll, ABA Awards Coordinator – 0438 273 264.

Micro food businesses abound in Tasmania, and Bruny Island Olives has its hand up for being the smallest and most exclusive of them all. Owen and Dianne Carington Smith are weekend farmers, caring for a tiny crop of table olives sold at only two shops. I joined a group of 18 family and friends and in three hours we picked half the crop one olive at time, no grabbing fistfuls and no mechanical assistance. There was a prize for the picker on the day who best guessed the size of the pick. Marge Direen’s guess of 165.5kg was only 14g above the 165.36kg correct weight.

The ultimate recipe for success calls for a splash of inspiration, a dollop of hard work and a tonne and a half of olives. That’s what seven young entrepreneurs have discovered with their company Caring and Co, founded as part of the nationwide Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme. The Manurewa High School students have just put the lids on 300 bottles of their hand-picked olive oil, Unique Drizzle. The group has had sole charge of the project the whole way through, writing business plans, organising shipping and hand-picking the donated olives at The Estate on Waiheke Island.