Olive Industry Grows With Demand For U.S. Oil

Olive Industry Grows With Demand For U S Oil CROPS New Crops Two years ago FARM SHOW published a story about Kevin Shaw who was working diligently to establish olives as a viable crop on Georgia farmland Vol 36 No 2 There were hundreds if not thousands of naysayers who poo-poohed the idea but as the calendar flips to 2014 Georgia Olive Farms GOV is still growing strong In 2011 the group harvested 4 tons of ripe olives from 14 acres of trees and quickly shipped them via refrigerated truck 1 000 miles to a Texas mill for processing The cool ride was needed to keep the crop from fermenting before it was processed In 2013 they harvested several hundred tons and processed them in their own facility The oil from Georgia Olive Farms has excellent flavor and outstanding quality according to a taste expert who called it “sweet smooth and soft” “Olive production is a marathon ” says Kevin “The trees start producing in the third year and don’t reach peak production until year 7 ” At that time revenue might be $1 000 to $3 000 an acre but only after nearly $10 000 an acre has gone into developing the trees which are planted 6 ft apart with about 600 to an acre Other farmers are adding olive production slowly but the partners feel many are watching GOF to see how 2013 production turns out GOF co-owner Berrien Sutton thinks that by 2015 there will be 6 more productive orchards and by 2018 olives could be produced on 2 000 acres with steady growth beyond In the meantime GOF continues to help others enter the olive industry by propagating trees gaining knowledge through industry associations and willingly sharing with interested growers Similar stories appear from other areas of the South especially Texas where olives are “the new oil boom” Jim Henry started the olive industry in Texas back in the early 1990’s and today his Texas Olive Ranch produces 2 Spanish varieties and one Greek variety of olives The company is planting a 300 000-tree orchard near Victoria Oils they produce now are processed into several flavors available from the company online and from several retailers in central and south Texas In 2009 another family operation Central Texas Olive Ranch planted 23 000 trees Since then Owner Curtis Mickan and his grandson Josh Swafford have planted close to 500 000 trees for growers in Central Texas and have another 110 000 contracted for 2014 Swafford estimates the cost for trees land work irrigation and planting at about $7 500 an acre but people aren’t deterred That’s because growers in the U S are determined to hold quality standards at the highest level and demand labeling that indicates “extra virgin olive oil” Industry experts are concerned that of the oil imported into the U S now about 70 percent are mislabeled and are not in fact extra virgin they’re a blend of several oils That rankles U S growers who vow to maintain high quality standards “It’s a fascinating business fast moving and showing great potential ” Swafford says A surey of growers at the olive grower’s annual meeting in 2013 indicated that production could increase by 200 percent in the next two years Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Josh Swafford Central Texas Olive Ranch 5251 FM 972 Granger Texas 76530 ph 512 863-7194; www txolive com ; or Jim Henry Texas Olive Ranch 6907 Old Preston Place Dallas Texas 75252 ph 855 896-5483; www texasoliveranch com ; or Kevin Shaw Georgia Olive Farms Box 245 Lakeland Ga 31635 ph 229 482-3505; www georgiaolivefarms com

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