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Spanish police this week arrested 19 people allegedly linked to a complex network engaged in multi-million euro olive oil fraud, money laundering and tax evasion. According to Diaro Jaén, the police – who swooped on Wednesday after a year-long probe by a Madrid-based economic crime unit – believe that companies involved in the ‘ring’ had been selling low quality olive oil as extra virgin.
Details of an alleged international olive oil scam – in which palm, avocado, sunflower and other cheaper oils were passed off as olive oil – were released today by Spanish police. They said the oils were blended in an industrial biodiesel plant and adulterated in a way to hide markers that would have revealed their true nature. The oils were not toxic, however, and posed no health risk, according to a statement by the Guardia Civil.
Tunisia’s Ministry of Agriculture has decided to buy large quantities of olive oil from producers, at the current consumer price that has been fixed at 3.6 dinars per litre. The decision was adopted to help the sector (one of the driving forces of the national agricultural sector) after prices on the international market were lowered.
Perhaps the Aust & NZ governments could do the same, and persuade parliamentary catering services to use olive oil exclusively – Ed.
Ollioules, a medieval town with about 13,000 inhabitants is situated in the heart of the beautiful Haute Provence Cote d’Azur region of France. The name Ollioules comes from the Roman word Oliolis which means olives. Like many other groves in the South of France, the ancient olive trees in Ollioules suffered badly during the glacial frosts of 1956. The owners responded by cutting away the damaged wood. It worked: the stumps grew again and many trees were saved. Before this traumatic winter, there were 12 olive mills in this historic town. Today, in Ollioules, there is a cooperative mill dedicated to olive growers and producers of the region.
Country of origin labelling (COOL) looks set to cause manufacturers serious headaches and extra cost burdens when the new rules start coming into force in 2014.
While the initial regulations relate primarily to meat products, plans will see COOL extended to a much wider range of products in the near future, and will also affect nutrition labelling, so it’s an issue we should all be abreast of – Ed.
THE fresh produce industry must unite to meet the threat posed by the major supermarket chains’ discounting of fruit and vegetables, says Adelaide Produce Market chairman David Schirripa. “If the promotion of fruit and veg purchased from independent fruit and vegetable retailers and independent supermarkets is not made a priority, this market and the ones like it around Australia will go into a slow decline.”
Places are now open for the Olives WA’s EVOO sensory training workshops on 24-25 March. Run by Richard Gawel, the workshops will cover the fundamentals of EVOO, and the effects of olive growing and processing methods on character and style. The courses will be presented in layman’s terms, and help participants to understand the key practical chemical indices of extra virgin olive oil – what they mean in terms of style, quality, shelf life and use. Level 1 – Saturday, 24 March; Level 2 – Sunday, 25 March 2012, with both open to members and other interested participants. For more information contact Pauline North on [email protected] or phone WAOC on (08) 9381 7162.
Order the ebook Evaluating Australian Table Olives for only $4.99 inc GST (normal retail $19.95). Published by Olive Skills & Olive Care Australia, this is a great guide for table olive producers and those looking to transition from oil to olive production. Limited stocks – no rainchecks. Phone (08) 8369 9555 to order. Offer available strictly until 24 February only.
Olives New Zealand have called an Extraordinary General Meeting for Saturday, 24 March at the Sudima Airport Hotel, Auckland. The business is to adopt the proposed new Constitution. The meeting will start at 9am sharp. View the new Constitution https://www.olivesnz.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Constitution-approved-by-Executive-December-2011.pdf.
The Executive of Olives New Zealand (ONZ) has conducted a comprehensive review of its Certification program, with the outcome recommendating that Olives New Zealand moves to using the Australian Department of Primary Industries for future certification from and including 2012. The cost to the grower would be maintained at the current cost and the system would continue to be administered by ONZ’s Executive Officer. Members are invited to comment on the proposal. The full paper is available on the ONZ website https://www.olivesnz.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Certification-Future-Direction.pdf. All feedback or questions are welcome: please address these to the Executive Officer, [email protected] by the end of February.