December 2023 Australia & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor

2023 AIOA bigger … and quality even better!

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2023 December

Awards results, Australia & New Zealand 2023 AOA National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition Co-operatives as a business model Trademarks

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Incorporating Australian Olive Industry Journal Published by the Australian Olive Association Ltd

Contents

December 2023 Issue 130

News

Publisher Australian Olive Association Ltd

Mine inquiry hears of health and EVOO reputational risks

4

Tasting workshop promotes IOC standards and methodology

5

Executive Editor Michael Southan ceo@australianolives.com.au

US olive oil testing study aims to strengthen consumer confidence

8

Managing Editor Gerri Nelligan editor@olivegrower.com.au Advertising Gerri Nelligan editor@olivegrower.com.au

News - Awards 2023 Australian International Olive Awards celebrate consistent quality

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2023 Australian International Olive Awards – Major Awards

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Adelaide Hills producers shine at Royal Adelaide Olive Awards

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Fedra takes back-to-back Best and Most Successful at Hunter Show

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Production Sandra Noke production@olivegrower.com.au

The Olive Dowry named AGOA Best … in Show, Class and New Producer

19

Victorian producers strike Gold at 2023 NYIOOC

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Subscriptions A one-year subscription (four issues) is: Aust $44 (AOA member discount rate $40), NZ $56 (ONZ member discount rate $52) and international $100. Visit www. olivebiz.com.au to subscribe.

Additional copies $15 each (International + postage).

Email editor@olivegrower.com.au to order.

Chapman River champions at WA Olive Awards

21

Three in a row for Gooramadda at 2023 Sydney Royal Fine Food Olive Awards

22

Circulation & Advertising Enquiries editor@olivegrower.com.au Contributions Articles and other contributions are welcome and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Photographs are best received as high resolution jpg files via email, and as separate attachments not embedded.

Printing Lane Print & Post Adelaide Australian Olive Association ABN 57 072 977 489

R&D Insights - Hort Innovation

23

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition National Conference gets industry interactive and engaged

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Creative exploration of Australian EVOO and olives

34

2023 Conference Sponsors & Exhibitors

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Olivegrower Profile - AIOA Best of Show Geelong Region Olives champions collaborative production

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New Zealand

PO Box 3012 Allambie Heights LPO Allambie Heights NSW 2100 Ph: (+61) 0478 606 145 E: secretariat@australianolives.com.au

South Island producers claim 2023 NZ EVOO Awards ‘Best’

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Co-operatives as a business model

45

ISSN 1448-5486

What should your website contain? 10 must-have ingredients for success

47

Conditions The opinions expressed in Olivegrower & Processor are not necessarily the opinions of or endorsed by the editor or publisher unless otherwise stated. All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher.

All material in Olivegrower & Processor is copyright © Australian Olive Association Ltd. All rights reserved.

No part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic, or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without written permission of the publisher.

While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, the publisher will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions, or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published.

Australian trade marks: the secret ingredient for olive growing businesses

48

Olive business

Products and services Orora Beverage leading the way in more sustainable packaging

49

What’s on/Advertiser index

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Cover: Australian International Olive Awards entries increased by 28% this year, while Gold and Silver made up 87% of medals awarded, compared with 76% of 2022’s medal count.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 3

News

Mine inquiry hears of health and EVOO reputational risks In the June and September editions, we reported on the new heavy metal mine proposed, and subsequently approved, for development at Lue, in the Mudgee region of NSW. The mine is a major concern for our industry, as there are 44,400 olive trees planted over 336 hectares within the local government area, at risk of contamination by lead and other toxic substances.

Hope for a possible future revision of the mine approval was raised by the establishment in July of an Upper House inquiry into ‘Current and potential impacts of gold, silver, lead and zinc mining on human health, and land, air and water quality in New South Wales’.

The inquiry sought submissions from interested stakeholders, and public hearings were held in September and October, with the committee due to report its findings by 21 November 2023. That has now been extended to 15 December, no doubt due to the volume of information presented.

AOA submission

AOA CEO Michael Southan made a presentation to the inquiry in early October, providing - as he had during the initial development approval process scientific evidence on the high likelihood of contamination of groves through plant uptake of lead, in particular.

He also highlighted the detrimental impact the mine would have on the Australian olive industry’s “reputation for premium flavour, freshness and health attributes”, stating that “that great reputation is at risk of being destroyed, and there are forces willing this to happen.”

In reference to the latter, he noted the current campaign by olive oil importers promoting imported product over Australian product, and that a lead mine in a major olive growing region would likely be “used as a reason why Australian EVOO should not be consumed”, to promote their position.

Expert medical opinion

Neurosurgeon Dr Peter Bentivoglio also made a submission to the inquiry, providing evidence around the health effects of lead contamination.

He told the hearing that exposure to lead dust from mining can be “deleterious to human health” and that “we know chronic exposure to lead in children results in IQ levels drops of 10 to 15 points”.

AOA CEO Michael Southan provided the inquiry with evidence on the high likelihood of contamination of olive groves through plant uptake of lead.

“Importantly, the fact that it impacts on the industry nationally is resonating” He cited existing mine sites in Broken Hill and Mount Isa, where elevated lead levels have been found in children as young as two, as examples, adding that “the statement that says there’s no health impacts as a result of the Bowdens lead mine, if it goes ahead, would have to be seriously tested.”

His submission also highlighted that, despite being managed by an experienced mining company, the Cadia Gold Mine near Orange has experienced “numerous breaches over the operating mine years in relation to toxic air quality and excessive trace element mineral levels in blood levels of local residents (including children).

“The management plans in this instance appear to have failed, therefore it is baffling that the IPC would approve Bowden’s Mine without sighting any Management Plans.”

Dr Bentivoglio is also co-owner of award-winning Mudgee EVOO producer Rylstone Olive Press, and another arm of his submission related to the negative effects of the mine on Rylstone’s olive grove and EVOO production. Rylstone CEO Jayne Bentivoglio added her own submission, highlighting the resulting “toxic dust deposit on our 8,000 trees, our employees, in our dams, in our drinking water and in our olive processing water”.

4 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

They noted that the commissioners had rejected an invitation to view the grove and processing plant, and expressed specific concern that “there has been no consultation with agriculture enterprises surrounding the mine” despite the recognised level of dust deposit in the mine Conditions of Consent.

Increased scrutiny and national resonance

Southan said the inquiry had brought new public attention to the mine approval, with an additional room and video link required to accommodate the 100-plus member audience present on the day of his submission.

Both Southan’s and Dr Bentivoglio’s presentations also received national attention, with the potential devastating impact on the reputation of Australian EVOO reported by the ABC news and other media including the Guardian Australia.

Southan said the inquiry itself has taken the issue to a different level of scrutiny than the initial approval process.

“We had the NSW politicians there and they were asking some really good questions,” he said.

“And importantly, the fact that it impacts on the industry nationally is resonating.”

More information

The committee’s report is due to be tabled after we go to print, so we’ll update once again on the outcomes, and any subsequent action in relation to the Lue mine, in the March 2024 edition.

You can also find more detail on the mine, along with opposition information and a link to all proposal and approval documentation, at www.lueactiongroup.org.

News

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The workshop showed that the IOC testing regime is based around virgin grade oil.

Tasting workshop promotes IOC standards and methodology A two-day tasting workshop held in Sydney in October took a deep dive into the testing regime and quality standards used by the International Olive Council (IOC). Run

by IOC expert Wenceslao Moreda, Principal Scientist at the Institute of Fats (CSIC) in Sevilla, the seminar was the next stage of the IOC’s three-year OLIVE OIL: TASTE - LIVE - SHARE - BETTER campaign, following its launch in October 2022.

Among the 25 industry invitees to the event, the AOA was represented by President Mike Thomsett, CEO Michael Southan and LEG Director Andrew Burgess. The management teams of both Modern Olives Laboratory and the NSW AgEnviro Labs also attended, as did oil scientist Rod Mailer and Australian International Olive Awards Head Judge Helen Taylor. A number of other guests are involved in olive oil importation to Australia.

Focus on faults

Mike Thomsett said the event involved tasting a range of oils, both Australian and imported, purchased from local supermarket shelves.

“They looked at flavour profiles but a lot of it was about faults,” he said.

“That showed the real difference in the industries: their testing regime is based

around the fact that they have all grades of oil, so they have to be able to pick them apart. They’re looking for whether an oil is virgin grade: they’re testing their panels on virgin because all their testing is around virgin and does it get there?

“We don’t have that here, as our quality rung is set at extra virgin, so the relevance for our industry is minimal.”

Standard discussions

Thomsett said chemistry was also a focus, which led to some robust discussion around the Australian Standard.

“They didn’t actually talk about our Standard, except in discussion with (Modern Olives Laboratory General Manager Technical) Claudia Guillaume around the Australian Standard’s more relevant methods,” he said.

“Claudia was able to stand up for the Australian Standard and the differences, and provide the reasons why they’re there.

Rod Mailer also used his expertise to clarify several technical elements to the audience.

“So it was very obviously trying to promote the use of the IOC Standard regulations and their official panel skills, and it showed that it is irrelevant here. I don’t have the chemistry background but I understand the principal of the methodologies we use:

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Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 5

News

Moreda’s comments about lack of fruitiness.

“And I don’t think that was actually the point of it, rather the messages were that the IOC way in terms of standards and methodology is the way to go. Also that labs have to be IOC accredited to be recognised.

“That’s only needed for export, though, and the Australian NATA accreditation is a much more rigorous one. Our labs are also guided by the very high quality parameters of the Australian Standard, so our producers can be assured of world’s best practice for their testing.”

we’ve got a rigorous Standard and we can pick out adulteration and freshness with better methods. It confirmed for me that the Australian Standard is really good.

IOC-AOA communication

“But it was an interesting event and a good opportunity for the AOA to reiterate to the IOC that we are the peak body for the Australian industry. Both Michael Southan and I discussed that with a number of IOC representatives.

“And while the AOA is happy to engage and communicate with the IOC, we would never look at membership because of the lack of relevance here. We’re also aware that New World countries don’t get a vote and the regulations are generally in the interests of large European producers.”

Technical not sensory

Michael Southan attended on day two and said the event was not what he had expected.

“For an olive oil sensory workshop, it was very theoretical and technical, and about methodology rather than learning to assess olive oils,” he said.

“I thought it was going to be a workshop for olive oil judges, to get a broader experience through input from the IOC and oils from

Not promotional

Campaign Ambassador, with AOA CEO Michael Southan, spoke about using olive oil in his restaurant, noting “the wonderful flavours and characteristics of Australian oils” in particular.

the European production. But it wasn’t that at all. Judges were few and far between and it wasn’t particularly ‘sensory’: we didn’t identify what the oils were, even after tasting, and we didn’t discuss descriptors except for

Southan said while the event was part of the IOC’s three-year promotional campaign, he can’t see it having any spill-over to Australian growers and/or consumer.

“I can’t see it impacting at all,” he said.

“There was no one there from any of the supermarkets or consumer groups, and no focus on consumer promotion. The closest it got to talking about benefits to consumers is when (campaign ambassador) Mark Olive talked about using olive oil in a lot of the dishes in his restaurant.

“And notably, he spoke about the wonderful flavours and characteristics of Australian oils in particular.”

The Board and Staff of the AUSTRALIAN OLIVE ASSOCIATION would like to thank our members for their ongoing support We wish you all a SAFE & MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

2023

Please note the AOA office will be closed from Friday, 15 December 2023 to Thursday, 25 January 2023 inclusive, re-opening on Monday, 29 January.

6 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

News

The study will create a new benchmark for olive oil testing, using stringent sampling protocol to set the standard for the industry.

US olive oil testing study aims to strengthen consumer confidence The North American Olive Oil Association (NAOOA), whose members represent over half the olive oil sold in the United States, is commissioning the most comprehensive, rigorous olive oil testing study run in the US to date.

With drought across the Mediterranean reducing global olive oil supplies and the resulting high olive oil prices expected to continue for some time, the NAOOA said its testing study is intended to strengthen consumer confidence in the authenticity and quality of the olive oil they buy.

"Our industry has successfully undertaken an ambitious, years-long effort to significantly improve the quality of olive oil in the American marketplace. As a result, consumers today can have tremendous confidence in the integrity of the olive oil available in U.S. stores," said NAOOA executive director Joseph Profaci.

"As prices climb due to current market conditions, we think it's even more important to assure consumers that they're getting the quality and authenticity they deserve.

“That's why we're launching this testing effort, which sets a new, even higher standard for our industry. The NAOOA has conducted random, off-the-shelf testing of both members' and non-members' products for years, but this study will vastly broaden those efforts."

New benchmark for testing

This study's aim is to create a new benchmark for olive oil testing, using the following stringent sampling protocol to set the standard for the industry: • Increased sample size: over 200 samples tested; • Retail samples: olive oil purchased directly from supermarkets and other retail outlets, not supplied by producers; • Foodservice samples: olive oils from wholesalers who supply restaurants and other foodservice outlets; • Geographic diversity: olive oils sourced proportionately from across the country to reflect geographic distribution; • Branded and private label: testing of both proprietary brands and private label products; • Independent sampling agencies: sampling conducted by independent sampling agencies unaffiliated with the olive oil industry in accordance with strict protocols based on regulatory guidance; • Independent, accredited laboratory: testing conducted in an independent IOC-accredited laboratory; • Full physico-chemical and organoleptic testing: each sample

8 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

subject to full chemical and organoleptic (sensory) testing of all parameters included in the proposed federal standard of identity for olive oil (including PPP and DAGs); • All grades: the study will test all olive oil grades and types commonly available to US consumers (i.e., extra virgin, regular and light-tasting).

Advance notice

The testing program will begin sampling in early 2024 to coincide with the first major shipments of olive oil from the most recent northern hemisphere growing season.

The NAOOA said the study is being announced in advance in part to deter any potential misconduct by bad actors seeking to capitalize on current market conditions. It has also flagged its intention that, where any oil fails to meet authenticity standards, the NAOOA will notify the responsible parties and take any responsive actions deemed appropriate. This could include notification of government authorities and/or initiating direct legal action.

The AOA experience

AOA CEO Michael Southan said the more rigorous testing program is an excellent way to influence the quality of products on the market.

“It sounds very similar to what we’ve done here in the past to ensure consumers got what they were paying for,” he said.

“The AOA’s annual testing project sampled both local and imported olive oils, and tested them for both quality and being true to label. The producer or importer was advised of the outcome and where there were anomalies, in most cases they improved their processes or supply sources.

“By the program end there was no doubt it had positively influenced the quality of oil being imported to Australia.

“It’s also great to see the use of PPPS and DAGs specifically referenced. They’re a way to measure the freshness of the oil, including whether it’s from this season or a previous season, and to determine a product-specific best before or use-by date.

“We call it ‘freshness tested’ and it’s production best practice in Australia. It’s highly encouraged by the OliveCare program and is something we would like to see included the international standards.”

More information: North American Olive Oil Association - www. aboutoliveoil.org.

News-Awards

2023

2023

2023

Best in Show Commercial Volume, Best Southern Hemisphere EVOO (+ many more): Lachie Ayton (left) and Stephen Parker, Geelong Region Olives.

2023 Australian International Olive Awards celebrate consistent quality The 2023 Australian International Olive Awards have proven beyond doubt the consistently high quality of Australian olive products. The winners’ list celebrates the whole gamut of industry production, from very small to large commercial, and newcomers to industry stalwarts.

And the proof was in the numbers: the average judges’ score was once again over 82 points, while Gold and Silver accounted for the lion’s share of the medals awarded.

Major winners - EVOO

The stand-out performer for 2023 was Geelong Region Olives’ Bundara View Koroneiki, awarded Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) in Show, Commercial Volume, along with the trophies for Best EVOO Southern Hemisphere, Best Australian EVOO, Best Victorian EVOO and Champion Greek Varietal EVOO. Produced by a grower collaboration, the Koroneiki was also awarded Gold and the judges’ highest score of 95/100.

It was just one of Geelong Region Olives’ medal winners in this year’s competition, with Golds also going to its Mt Moriac Olives Mediterranean, Mason’s Creek Estate Corregiola and Mason’s Creek Estate Blend; Silvers to Mt Moriac Olives Ligurian, Barwon River Olives Estate Tuscan, Mt Moriac Estate Tuscan and Bundara View Estate Taggiasca; and Bronze medals to its Barwon River Olives Estate Picual and Bello Marco Estate Picual. An impressive haul indeed!

Best EVOO of Show, Boutique Volume, was awarded to fellow Victorian producer Cape Schanck Olive Estate for its Picholine varietal. The 92-pointed EVOO also added Gold and the trophy for Champion Other Varietal EVOO to its award list, while Cape Schanck’s Picual matched it with another Gold.

Best EVOO of Show Boutique Volume, Best Other Varietal EVOO: Vivian Thelander, Sui Tham and Neil Thelander, Cape Schanck Olive Estate.

Flavoured Olive Oil

Taking the major oil awards further afield, Western Australian producer Marvick Native Farms earned the trophy for Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show, Boutique Volume, for its Kaffir Lime. It was also named Champion Agrumato Olive Oil, earning Gold and the judges’

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 9

News-Awards 2023 AIOA EVOO entry fast facts

The Australia n International Olive Awards Results 2023

• 197 entries, including 12 from international exhibitors • 178 medals awarded: 73 Gold, 81 Silver, 24 Bronze • medals to 90% of entries • average score 82.25/very high silver • significant increase in medium intensity oils, small increase in robust, decrease in mild • made from one or more of 34 varieties (41 in 2021): monovarietals 55% (63%), two-cultivar blends 26% (20%), three cultivar blends 13% (8%), four+ cultivar blends 7% (9%) • 62% of gold medal oils made from a single cultivar (68% in 2022) • average free fatty acid percentage: 0.194 (0.247 in 2022) • average peroxide level: 5.96mEq O2/kg (5.331 in 2022) • average polyphenol count: 280mg/kg (287.43 in 2022) • polyphenol range: 80mg/kg Corregiola, Kalamata, Frantoio blend to 910.4mg/kg Olympia (39ppm Arbequina to 1062ppm Tunisian Chetoui in 2022) The

AU STRAL I I N T E R N AT A N IONAL Olive

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Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show Boutique Volume, Champion Agrumato Olive Oil: Vickie Shina and Mark Andrew, Marvick Native Farms.

second highest score of 94/100. Marvick Farms Red Centre Lime was awarded a Silver medal, while its rain Forest Pearl Finger Lime, Sunrise Lime and Rain Forest Jade Finger Lime flavoured oils added Bronzes to its medal score.

And in the larger scale production category, South Australia’s Rio Vista Olives was awarded Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show, Commercial Volume, for its Mandarin Pressed Olive Oil, which was also named Reserve Champion Agrumato Olive Oil. The Mandarin Pressed’s Gold was just one of Rio Vista’s many 2023 AIOA medals, with additional Golds to its Lemon Pressed Olive Oil and Merchant Spiced Olive Oil; and Silvers to its Gigi EVOO; Elisi Grove Kalamata EVOO and Nothin’ But Olives Classic EVOO.

International winners

Italian producer Monini S.P.A. once again led the field among international entrants, taking Gold and the trophies for Best EVOO Northern Hemisphere and the trophies for Best EVOO Northern Hemisphere and Champion Italian Varietal EVOO for its 91-pointed Monini Monocultivar Coratina Bio EVOO. It earned another Gold medal for its Moncultivar Nocellara Bio, a Silver for its Granfruttato and a Bronze for its Monocultivar Frantoio Bio. Brazil’s Estância Das Oliveiras claimed another of the competition’s major awards, awarded Champion Robust EVOO for its 92-pointed Los Dos blend, while also taking Silver for its varietal Frantoio.

And Spanish producer Goya en España took the trophies for Best Table Olive Northern Hemisphere and Champion Pitted and/or Stuffed Olives for its Gold medal-winning Table Olives Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Serrano Ham. The Table Olive Competition moved the Additional table olive Golds went to Goya’s focus to New South Wales, with the Best Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Minced Tuna Table Olive in Show, Commercial Volume, Paste and Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with trophy going to ALTO Olives’ Misto. The Minced Blue Cheese Paste; and Silvers to its varietal mix also took the awards for Best Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Manchego Table Olive Southern Hemisphere, Best Cheese Paste, Manzanilla Spanish Olives, Australian Table Olive and Champion Whole Queen Olives, Queen Olives Stuffed Medley of Olives, as well as the judges’ Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show Commercial: Jacqueline Bettio, with Minced Pimientos, Manzanilla Olives equal top score of 95/100.

Stuffed with Spicy chorizo Paste, Manzanilla Like the other top winners, ALTO Rio Vista Olives.

Olives Stuffed with Minced Salmon Paste was a multi-medal winner at this year’s competition, also taking home Gold for its Vividus EVOO and Silver and Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Minced Pimientos.

It also had success in the EVOO classes, awarded Silver for its for its Robust EVOO. Meanwhile, Hunter Valley producer Adina Vineyard & Olive Unico Premium EVOO and Organics Premium EVOO; and Bronze Grove backed up last year’s results with another Best Table Olive of medals for its Robusto EVOO and Goya EVOO. Show, Boutique Volume, this time for its Hunter Providore Orange & Thyme. The 91-pointed flavoured olive also took the trophy for Global judging expertise and feedback Champion Specialty Olive, while Adina’s Hunter Providore Wild Australia’s premier olive competition, the Australian International Olives (90 points) took the trophy for Champion Wild Olives.

Olive Awards (AIOA) is run annually by the Australian Olive Adina added another Gold medal for its Ligurian Style table Association (AOA) and opened to international entries in 2017. olives, along with Silver for its Lime & Coriander flavoured olives. Judging is also international, with 2023 entries evaluated by expert 10 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

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News-Awards

panels in China, Spain, France, Tunisia, New Zealand and Australia, an element which Convenor and Chief Steward Trudie Michels believes sets the AIOA apart.

“We are honoured to have such an amazing selection of highly qualified and respected international judges on our team. The evaluation input from different countries and cultures provides an array of great feedback for AIOA exhibitors, and is something few other international competitions offer,” she said.

“And the eagerness from international judges to be involved in the AIOA competition continues to highlight the respect that these people have for the Australian olive industry, as well as the competition.

“Together with our skilled Australian judges, they’re the reason for the event’s success and growing reputation. Competition was strong this year and the judges were extremely professional and meticulous whilst evaluating a greatly increased number of entries. The AOA are truly indebted to them all for their commitment, can-do attitudes and accommodating work ethic.”

Increased entries

Michels described the 2023 harvest season as “long - and much better than 2022”, the latter reflected in the increased number of entries in this year’s competition.

“We had a lot of first-time exhibitors, many of whom received high medals, awards and great feedback,” she said.

“And after such a challenging harvest last year, with tiny or no yields, flooding, frosts and other unwelcome weather conditions, it was pleasing to see also many familiar producers entering the competition again. Many companies also increased the number of entries from last year, and the end result was 28% more entries than 2022”

Rewarding experience

Event Convenor and Chief Steward Trudie Michels said this year’s results show that the industry has hit its straps in terms of quality, with experience and knowledge now overcoming the vagaries of the seasons.

“As challenging as the late harvest year was, the EVOOs judged this year have been quite amazing,” she said.

Best SA EVOO: Nick and Rosie Johnston, Michael’s Olives, with AIOA Convenor Trudie Michels.

“In Australian oils, the majority of aromas and flavours were classified in the ‘green’ spectrum - including green vegetal, herbs, fresh grass, rocket and green tea, along with red and green apple, and green banana - many also with lovely floral notes. There were fewer riper ‘tropical’ spectrum oils - tropical fruits, tomato flesh, ripe banana, passionfruit, kiwi and stone fruit – most likely due to the longer, cooler ripening season, and also fewer robust oils, with most of mild to medium intensity.

“The quality and flavour profiles of the flavoured oils and table olives were also fantastic, with this year’s table olive entries rated by the judges as some of the best yet.

“The results back that up, with the average score once again more than 82/100. That equates to a very high Silver and continues the trend over recent years of rising quality and scores. The percentage of

If you won but couldn’t make the presentation … … we won’t have a photo of you so we can celebrate your success with the wider industry.

And that’s a shame, as sharing those images is our chance to give welldeserved recognition to award-winning producers for all the hard work they put into their groves and production throughout the year.

It’s also about providing the maximum promotion possible for our winners, and ensuring their brands, businesses and achievements are - quite literally as visible as possible.

We’ll be running a spread of 2023 AIOA winners’ images in each of the next three editions of Olivegrower & Processor, so if you won medals and/or major awards at this year’s competition ... please send us a photo!

As you can see from the previous contributions above, it can be as formal

or playful as you want – it’s totally up to you. Here’s a checklist of what to include and how to get it to us: • Faces - happy, smiling and looking at the camera *you, your team or your whole family, if you’re all involved in the business.

• An attractive, relevant background your grove, farmshop, packing shed alternatively, a plain wall.

• Holding your AIOA Certificate and the winning product/s.

• Names to go with the faces (first and last).

• High resolution (min 300 dpi), sent at full-size as an attachment.

• Emailed to Editor Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au Thank you in advance! We look forward to sharing your happy, smiling, winning faces with our readers across the olive world.

12 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

News-Awards

entries awarded medals was also up substantially this year, with Gold or Silver accounting for 154 of the total 178. That’s really impressive in such a challenging harvest year.”

The statistics

There was a total of 265 entries this year: 197 extra virgin olive oils, 36 flavoured olive oils and 32 table olive entries. This was a substantial increase from 207 entries in 2022.

In the extra virgin olive oil competition there were 178 medals: 73 Gold (63 in 2022), 81 Silver (56 in 2022) and 24 Bronze (21 in 2022).

Just over 90% of entries were awarded a medal, slightly up on last year’s 89%.

The average score across all awarded oils was 82.25 points (very high silver), the same as the 2022 average and an increase on 2021 (78.21 points) and 2020 (81.7 points).

Oils made from a single cultivar represented 54.8 % of entries (62.8% in 2022). Blends of two cultivars represented 25.7% of entries (19.9% in 2022), blends of three varieties 12.7% (8.3% in 2022) and blends of 4 or more cultivars 7.1% (8.9% in 2022).

More than 62% of Gold medal oils were made with a single cultivar (68% in 2022); blends of four or more cultivars made up 8% of gold medal winning oils. The two Best in Show EVOO awards were both single varietals - Koroneiki and Picholine.

The largest class by far was Medium oils (polyphenol/biophenol levels 200-300 ppm) with 105 entries, more than twice the 2022 Medium entries. There was also a slight increase in the number of more Robust oils, while the Mild class was very small compared to previous years.

There were 36 entries in the flavoured olive oil classes this year (29 in 2022), of which 94% received a medal: seven Gold (15 in 2022), 18 Silver (13 in 2022) and nine Bronze (1 in 2022). Citrus Agrumato was once again the largest class by far.

The table olives classes received 32 entries, which was well up on last year’s 22 entries. All entries received a medal - 16 Gold, 15 Silver and one Bronze - a result we hope is noted by Australian consumers!

World-class fresh local products, available now

AOA CEO Michael Southan said this year’s competition is proof that the Australian olive industry is all about quality production.

“The focus on best practice from grove to consumer is reflected across all sectors of the industry: the growers who’ve been doing it for years keep doing it better, and we had many first-time exhibitors this year who received medals and awards. Whether they’ve got 200

Best Northern Hemisphere EVOO, Champion Italian Varietal: Matthew Farrugia and Leanne Rimando, Monini S.P.A.

trees or 20,000 trees, Australian olive growers’ products are simply damned good,” he said.

“They’re also locally produced, with low food miles from grove to sales - and while droughts in Europe have decimated their production, we have plenty of fresh, new-season Australian olive products.

“That’s great news for Australian consumers: high-quality, worldclass EVOOs, flavoured oils and table olives, produced locally and available now. Together with the current levelling out of pricing between imported and local EVOO, we’re expecting that to translate into even stronger growth in market share for Australian olive producers.”

Full results

All medal and trophy winners were announced at the Australian International Olive Awards Presentation Dinner, held in Canberra on 27 October in conjunction with the AOA National Olive Conference.

The full results listing, along with more detailed competition information and statistics, are available by downloading the official 2023 AIOA Results Book from the competition website: www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia.com.au - Results.

Marketing made easy with professional product shots After a great response last year, the AOA is once again making the official AIOA product images available to entrants at a minimal cost, to assist with marketing and promotion of your medal-winning products.

The images were taken for the official AIOA Results Booklet, by a professional photographer with the equipment and experience to deal with the reflective nature of glass and nuances of lighting various packaging and product shapes.

Each is a stock image with a white background, making very versatile - suitable for use on your own website, Facebook page or Instagram feed, or provided to media. The artwork is provided in a high-resolution format, so is also suitable for hard print - e.g. magazines and brochures.

The cost is $35 (+ GST) per product shot, with easy online ordering via the AOA website. Just go to www.australianolives. com.au - Resources - Shop - Decals.

Order yours now, and present your award-winning products in a professional light!

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 13

Editorial News-Awards

2023 Australian International Olive Awards – Major Awards Best of Show Awards

Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show, Boutique Volume - Cape Schanck Olive Estate, Picholine (VIC) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show, Commercial Volume - Geelong Region Olives, Bundara View Koroneiki (VIC) Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show, Boutique Volume - Marvick Native Farms, Kaffir Lime (WA) Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show, Commercial Volume - Rio Vista Olives, Mandarin Pressed (SA) Best Table Olive of Show, Boutique Volume - Adina Vineyard and Olive Grove, Hunter Providore Orange & Thyme (NSW) Best Table Olive of Show, Commercial Volume - ALTO Olives, Misto (NSW)

Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil South Australia - Michael's Olives, Jumble Blend (SA) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil Tasmania Cradle Coast Olives, Essence of the Cradle (TAS) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil Victoria Geelong Region Olives, Bundara View Koroneiki (VIC) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil Western Australia - Arthur's Grove, Manzanillo (WA) Highest Phenolic Content - Cootamundra Olives, Cootamundra Olives EVOO (NSW)

Best of Show Awards – Global Region

Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil Southern Hemisphere - Geelong Region Olives, Bundara View Koroneiki (VIC) Best Table Olive Southern Hemisphere ALTO Olives, Misto (NSW) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil Northern Hemisphere - Monini S.P.A., Mono Cultivar Coratina Bio (Italy) Best Table Olive Northern Hemisphere Goya en España, Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Serrano Ham (Spain)

Champion Awards - Region

Best Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil Geelong Region Olives, Bundara View Koroneiki (VIC) Best Australian Table Olive - ALTO Olives, Misto (NSW) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil ACT - Fedra Olive Grove, Fedra Extra Virgin First Cold Press Olive Oil (ACT) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil New South Wales - W2Olives, Hardys Mammoth (NSW)

Champion Awards - Class

Champion Class 1, Mild Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Cradle Coast Olives, Essence of the Cradle (TAS) Champion Class 2, Medium Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Grampians Olive Co., Olio Nuovo Organic (VIC) Champion Class 3, Robust Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Estância Das Oliveiras, Los Dos (Brazil)

Champion Class 4, Non-Packaged (Bulk) Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Nasmin, Frantoio (SA) Champion Class 5A, Spanish Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Grassy Spur Olives, Picual (VIC) Champion Class 5B, Italian Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Monini SpA, Mono Cultivar Coratina Bio (Italy) Champion Class 5C, Greek Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Geelong Region Olives, Bundara View Koroneiki (VIC) Champion Class 5D, Other Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Cape Schanck Olive Estate, Picholine (VIC) Champion Class 6, Flavoured and or Infused Olive Oil - Fedra Olive Grove, Wild Lime and Chilli (NSW) Champion Class 7, Agrumato Olive Oil Marvick Native Farms, Kaffir Lime (WA) Champion Class 11, Green Olives - Parafield Organic Table Olives, Wallis (NSW) Champion Class 12, Medley of Olives ALTO Olives, Misto (NSW) Champion Class 13, Olives Turning Colour & Black Olives - Not awarded Champion Class 14, Kalamata Olives Gooramadda Olives, Kalamata (VIC) Champion Class 15, Wild Olives - Adina Vineyard & Olive Grove, Hunter Providore Wild Olives (NSW) Champion Class 16, Dried Olives Parafield Organic Table Olives, Dried Kalamata (NSW) Champion Class 17, Pitted and or Stuffed Olives - Goya en España, Manzanilla Olives Stuffed with Serrano Ham (Spain) Champion Class 18, Specialty Olives - Adina Vineyard & Olive Grove, Hunter Providore Orange & Thyme (NSW)

Thank you to our 2023 Event Sponsors: Bronze sponsor, Best South Australian EVOO: Olive Oil Packaging Services ackaging S il P

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Platinum Show sponsor: Department of Primary Industries AgEnviro Labs

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Supporting sponsor: Australian Olive Association

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News-Awards

Best EVOO of Show, Small Producer, Best SA EVOO and Best Medium EVOO: Marlene Wiese and Justin Taylor, Millbrook Valley Farm, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Best EVOO In Show, Large Producer: Domenic Scarfo, Diana Olive Oil, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Adelaide Hills producers shine at Royal Adelaide Olive Awards There was double the jubilation at this year’s Royal Adelaide Olive Awards presentation dinner, with a new trophy creating the first dual winners of the competition’s Best EVOO of Show award.

Honouring the work and dedication of former Olives SA President Michael Johnston, the inaugural Michael Johnston Memorial Trophy for Best EVOO of Show, Small Producer was won by Adelaide Hills producer Millbrook Valley Farm for its Press EVOO. Joining Millbrook at the top of the 2023 award ladder was Fleurieu Peninsula producer Diana Olive Oil, which took out the Dr Michael Burr AM Trophy for Best EVOO of Show, Large Producer for its Novello EVOO. Millbrook’s Press EVOO was awarded the competition’s top judges’

2023 Royal Adelaide Olive Awards – Major Awards Dr Michael Burr Am Trophy for Best EVOO of Show, Large Producer - Diana Olive Oil Novello Michael Johnston Memorial Trophy for Best EVOO of Show, Small Producer - Millbrook Valley Farm Press EVOO Best Flavoured Oil of Show - Rio Vista Olives Mandarin Pressed Olive Oil Best South Australian Oil of Show - Millbrook Valley Farm Press EVOO Best Mild EVOO - Prema Bros. Francesco Best Medium EVOO - Millbrook Valley Farm Press EVOO Best Robust EVOO - Michael's Olives Best Bulk EVOO - Nasmin FS-17 Best Single Varietal EVOO - Rylstone Olive Press Frantoio Best Multi-Varietal EVOO - Diana Olive Oil Novello Best Flavoured Olive Oil, Agrumato - Rio Vista Olives Mandarin Pressed Olive Oil Best Flavoured Olive Oil, Other Method - Fedra Olive Grove Wild Lime and Chilli Best Non-Commercial Oil - Oakwood Grove Best School Oil - Willunga High School Best Green Olives - Olives From Broke Best Wild Olives - Australia Olive Company, Premium Wild Table Olives

16 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

score of 94 points, earning the ‘delicious oil’ Gold and two additional major awards – Best Medium EVOO and Best South Australian Oil of Show.

Also awarded Best Multi-Varietal EVOO, Diana Olive Oil’s Best in Show-winning Novello was deemed ‘seamless’ by the judges, who gave it 91 points and Gold. Diana added to its show success with a Silver medal for its Chef’s Blend EVOO – ‘a crowd-pleasing oil’.

Stand-out winner of the Flavoured Oil competition was Rio Vista Olives’ Mandarin Pressed Olive Oil, awarded the trophy for Best Flavoured Oil of Show, along with Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show, Agrumato. With an equally impressive score of 93 points, the Gold medal awarded Mandarin Pressed was described by the judges as ‘quite spectacular’.

The Adelaide Hills/Murraylands producer was one of the competition’s highest achievers, also taking Gold for its Chilli Pressed Olive Oil, Silvers for its Lemon Pressed Olive Oil, Hardy’s Mammoth EVOO and Koroneiki EVOO, and Bronze for its Manzanillo EVOO. The table olive competition saw major awards go to last year’s Best of Show winner, the Australian Olive Company, awarded Best Wild Olives for its Premium Wild Table Olives, and NSW producer Olives From Broke, which took the award for Best Green Olives.

Late, wet … and delicious!

Chief Steward Trudie Michels said the competition results are proof of the dedication of the hard-working producers who submitted entries this year.

“The season was late and wet, and many producers struggled to get the olives off before more rain. Despite the challenging year, however, the oils have in general been quite delicious,” she said.

“The higher scores achieved continue to prove that oil quality is continuing to improve and exhibitors should be very proud of their work.

‘Green’ year

“This year’s great oils were incredible, and the aromas transferred with intensity to the palate. The majority of aromas and flavours were classified in the ‘green’ spectrum and included a significant array of aromas and flavours, from green vegetal (beans, peas, spinach),

News-Awards

Gold + four Silver medals: Lachlan and Hazel Rowntree, Longridge Olives, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Silver + three Bronze medals: John Fielke, Ag-IQ Australia, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Three Silver + Bronze medals: Jared Gilbertson, Macaw Creek Olive Grove, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Best Flavoured Oil of Show, Best Flavoured Olive Oil - Agrumato: Vince Lee, Rio Vista Olives, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Best Robust EVOO: Rosie and Cameron Johnston, Michael's Olives, with Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos.

Best School Oil: (from left) Sam Haese, Acting OSA President Steve Pantelos, David Low, Sarah Truman and Kelly Meaney, Willunga High School.

herbs, fresh grass, green salad leaf (rocket), green tea, red and green apple, and green banana. There were also lovely floral notes.

“There were fewer riper tropical oils and I expect this had a lot to do with the longer, cooler ripening season, where the olives just could not ripen as hoped.

“In the oils that did not win a medal, the aromas tended to be very mild and or lacking intensity and or unbalanced. It was a challenge to decipher specific aroma and flavour characters.”

Stunning flavours

Michels said that this year’s Flavoured Oil classes once again showed that Australian producers really know what they’re doing when it comes to producing these increasingly popular products.

“To have 100% of flavoured oils entered win a medal is fantastic: it’s great to see that flavoured oil producers are continuing to improve both technique and quality, and being rewarded for it,” she said.

“The judges are really enjoying assessing these oils and commented that the quality just keeps getting better. The Best in Show winner, a Mandarin Agrumato oil, was simply stunning.”

Difficult season for table olives

2023 Table Olive competition Chief Judge Michelle Wirthensohn said the results reflected the difficult 2022/2023 season for olive growers.

“The winter was very cold and ran well into spring, followed by a cool summer. This delayed fruit ripening, with the resulting variability in fruit,” she said.

“This variability makes it difficult for processors to get the flavour balance perfect - i.e. bitterness, salt, acid and olive flavours.

“To this end, no gold awards were given, but hopefully the 2023/2024 season will be better.”

Statistics

The 2023 Royal Adelaide Olive Awards received a total of 86 EVOO entries (well up on the 73 entered in 2022), along with 18 Flavoured Oil entries (down from 28) and 12 Table Olive entries (up from 10). There was also an increase in entry numbers in the Noncommercial and School Oil classes.

The oil entries came from VIC, SA, NSW, and TAS; table olive entries from SA and NSW. In the EVOO classes, 79 of the 86 entries were awarded a medal (91.86%). This was a slight increase from 2022 (90.4%) and 2021 (88%).

Of particular note this year was the increase in quality in the extra virgin commercial classes (1 - 6), with 20 Gold medals (26% of entries), 38 Silver medals (49.4%) and 15 Bronze medals (19.5%) awarded. This is a marked improvement on the 2022 Gold and Silver medal results of 18 Gold (24.6% of entries) and 27 Silver (36.9%) medals.

Four oils received no medal (8.1% of entries); there were no withdrawn oils.

The trend this year was to medium oils, compared with last year’s medium-to-robust profile and 2021’s majority of mild-to-medium oils.

The Flavoured Oil classes saw 14 entries in Agrumato style and four entries in Other than Agrumato. This was a decrease of 35% on last year’s entries.

All (100%) of the flavoured oils were awarded a medal, up from 82% in 2022, with a total of six Gold, 11 Silver and one Bronze.

The Table Olive Competition had 12 exhibits across five classes, with a total of three Silver and eight Bronze medals awarded.

Full results are available on the Olives SA website www.olivessouthaustralia.org.au.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 17

News-Awards

(Left) Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil from NSW & ACT excluding Hunter Valley Fruit: Kate Fagan, Adina Vineyard & Olive Grove and Barry Hamilton, Fedra Olive Grove. (Right) Most Successful Exhibitor: Barry and Hunter Olive Association President Marie Kearns.

Bronze medal: Chief Judge Steve Mitchell and Tony Bennett, Rocklee Grove.

Fedra takes back-to-back Best and Most Successful at Hunter Show New South Wales producer Fedra Olive Grove repeated last year’s success at the 2023 Hunter Olive Show, winning the Hunter Bottling Company Trophy for Most Successful Exhibitor of Show with a clean medal sweep for its 10 entries. Awarded Gold and the judges’ equal top score of 18/20, Fedra’s Frantoio varietal also took home the Australian Olive Association Trophy for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show, the Adina Olive Grove and Vineyard Trophy for Best EVOO from NSW excluding Hunter Valley Fruit and the award for Best Medium Oil. Success was also to be had in the Flavoured Oil classes, with the Hunter Bottling Company Trophy for the Best Infused Oil of Show awarded to Fedra Olive Grove’s Thyme oil with Fresh Thyme, also named Best Infused Olive Oil, Other Flavours. All up Fedra’s medal tally was two Gold, five Silver and three Bronze, topped off by an additional Best in Class award for its Lemon Myrtle, Garlic & Thyme infused olive oil.

Hunter Valley producer Olives from Broke also repeated its 2022 success, awarded the Olive Centre Trophy for Best Table Olive of Show for its Picholine varietal table olives.

The Picholine also earned Silver and the class award for Best Green Olives, while its Black Manzanillo with Chilli & Garlic added another Silver and the award for Best Spiced or Flavoured Black Olives.

There was a third repeat performance from 2022 by Victorian producer Paringa Ridge, whose Arbequina was awarded 17 points, Gold and the class award for Best Mild EVOO. Paringa Ridge won the same award last year with its Picual varietal, awarded a Silver in this year’s competition.

And another high achiever deserving of mention was Tasmanian producer Glendale

2023 Hunter Olive Show Major Trophies Hunter Bottling Company Trophy for Most Successful Exhibitor of Show Fedra Olive Grove Australian Olive Association Trophy for Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show - Fedra Olive Grove Frantoio Farmland Co Trophy for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Hunter Valley Fruit - Rosto Olive Grove Koroneiki, Arbequina and Corregiola Modern Olives Trophy for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show from Victorian Fruit - Paringa Ridge Arbequina Adina Vineyard & Olive Grove Trophy for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil from NSW & ACT excluding Hunter Valley Fruit - Fedra Olive Grove Frantoio Olivegrower & Processor Trophy for the Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Tasmanian Fruit - Glendale Olives Manzanillo Olives, which took home a Bronze, three Silver and a Gold for its six EVOO entries.

Glendale’s Manzanillo shared the judges’ high score of 18/20 and was awarded Best Robust EVOO and the Olivegrower & Processor Trophy for Best EVOO from Tasmanian Fruit.

Flavoured entries down … and up

Chief stewards and show organisers Steve Mitchell and Alan Smith said that while 2023 crops were an improvement on 2022’s low

18 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

outcomes, entries were well down in several of the categories.

“It is notable that the table olive offering was much reduced in volume and quality this year, while in EVOO there was a significant shift to the medium and robust classes and the mild class was the smallest for many years,” they said.

“Despite this, overall entries numbered 67, basically the same as last year, and quite respectable. Flavoured oil entries were well down but that was balanced by a nearly three-fold increase in EVOO entries, while in table olives the flavoured entries dominated.

“It was pleasing to see an innovative entry this year in an olive powder. While it presented some challenges for the judges to assess it appropriately, this product opens a new use for olives as an ingredient in the kitchen.”

The statistics

There were 34 EVOO entries in total, awarded five Gold, 17 Silver and 10 Bronze medals. Two entries received no medal.

The flavoured oil classes received 15 entries, with one Gold, nine Silver and four Bronze medals awarded. One entry received no medal.

Entries in the table olive classes were comparatively low at 14 table olives and four tapenades. The majority of the olive entries were in the flavoured classes, with only three entries in the plain classes. A total of six Silver and five Bronze medals were awarded, while seven entries received no medal.

Full results are available on the Hunter Olive Association website - www.hunterolives. asn.au – under the Annual Olive Show dropdown.

News-Awards

The Olive Dowry named AGOA Best … in Show, Class and New Producer Hands-on production has proven its worth for Yackandandah Valley’s The Olive Dowry, awarded Best in Show at this year’s Australian Golden Olive Awards (AGOA). A boutique producer with just 550 trees, The Olive Dowrie is run on organic principles, using traditional farming techniques, with many tasks performed by hand.

The major gong was earned by The Olive Dowry’s Manzanillo, Correggiola and Kalamata Blend, which was also awarded Best in Class - Small Volume, Gold, and the judges’ equal top score of 87/100.

That’s an impressive award haul for a single entry and led to The Olive Dowry being named 2023’s Best New Producer.

The Best in Class - Large Volume award saw some very tough competition this year, with Mornington Peninsula producer Taralinga Estate’s Robusto Blend tying for the title with South Australian producer Rio Vista’s Signore varietal. Both joined The Olive Dowry’s winning oil in achieving Gold and the competition’s top score of 87/100.

And rounding off the major winners was Southern Victorian producer Grampians Olive Co., which which received a judges’ score of 86/100, Gold and the Best Oil from Heritage Trees award for its Signature Blend.

Harvest challenges

The winners were announced at the AGOA presentation dinner on 1 September, marking the 25th anniversary of the competition.

Organisers Rob and Melanie Whyte said each harvest year brings its own challenges and the competition reflects this.

“This year many of our regular entrants were missing, due to a number of factors. Most significantly, many groves were hit by Olive Lace Bug, which significantly reduced yield,” they said.

“This was a consequence of great conditions for lace bugs (not so great for olive growers!). A mild summer and slow cooling through to winter also meant that a lot of crops were not harvested until quite late: some growers harvested too late to enter, while others had not harvested before the frosts came.

“That said, a lot of truly wonderful olive oils were entered, including seven Gold medal oils which scored within a point of each other.

“Only one olive oil failed to be classified extra virgin and we have worked with that person to sort out what happened: one of the important benefits of entering the AGOA is assistance to identify processes needing improvement to ensure that future oils meet the Australian Standards for extra virgin olive oil.”

Statistics

A total of 53 medals were awarded: seven Gold, 37 Silver and nine Bronze. The Gold medals all scored 86 or 87 points, with three sharing the judges’ top score of 87.

Single varietal oils accounted for 30 of the medals, blends for 19 medals and four were awarded to flavoured oil entries.

Fruit for entries was harvested from April to July. Medium intensity oils were predominantly harvested in May (10) and June (12), while the majority of robust oils were produced from fruit harvested in May. The trend overall was to medium and robust oils.

2023 AGOA Best of Show, Best in Class - Small Volume, Best New Producer, Gold: Jo Beer, The Olive Dowry.

2023 Australian Golden Olive Awards Major Winners

Best Oil in Show: The Olive Dowry - Manzanillo, Correggiola, Kalamata Blend Best New Producer: The Olive Dowry Processor of the Year: EV Olives Best in Class Class 1 - Micro Volume: Not Awarded Class 2 - Small Volume: The Olive Dowry - Manzanillo, Correggiola, Kalamata Blend Class 3 - Large Volume: Taralinga Estate - Robusto Blend/ Rio Vista - Signore Class 4 - Heritage Trees: Grampians Olive Co. - Signature Blend Class 5 - Agrumato: Not Awarded Class 6 - Infused Oil: Not Awarded *Best in Class is only awarded where a gold medal is achieved in that class.

The lowest polyphenol level was 78, from fruit harvested on 2 May; the highest 567, from fruit harvested on 7 June.

More information

The Australian Golden Olive Awards are run annually by the regional organisation Olive Producers North East Victoria (OPNEV).

Find out more at www.australianoliveawards.com.au.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 19

News-Awards

Victorian producers strike Gold at 2023 NYIOOC Local producers have once again tasted success at this year’s New York International Olive Oil Competition (NYIOOC), with Australian and New Zealand entries awarded a combined total of 16 medals.

Victorian producers claimed all six Gold medals, along with six of the 10 Silver medals. The Golds were spread across the state, with two each going to Mornington Peninsula producer Cape Schanck Olive Estate, Boort producer Cobram Estate and South Gippsland producer Grassy Spur.

Cobram Estate added three Silver medals to its 2023 haul, with another two each going to Mornington Peninsula producer Taralinga Estate and NSW producer ALTO Olives. Silver medals were also awarded to Adelaide Plans producer Prema Bros and Mornington Peninsular producer Paringa Ridge.

An additional Silver medal went to Wairarapa, New Zealand producer Loopline Olives.

NYIOOC 2023 medals

Gold Cape Schanck Olive Estate Picholine Cape Schanck Olive Estate Picual Cobram Estate Robust - Blend Cobram Estate Ultra-premium Coratina Grassy Spur Frantoio Grassy Spur Picual Silver ALTO Robust – Blend ALTO Olives Vividus – Hardy’s Mammoth Cobram Estate Classic EVOO Cobram Estate Ultra-premium Hojiblanca Cobram Estate Ultra-premium Picual Francesco Reserve - Blend Leontyna Black Label EVOO - Picual Taralinga Fruttato - Blend Taralinga Robusto - Picual NZ Silver Loopline Picual

Statistics

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This year saw a comparative increase in organic entries (357, up from 338 in 2022) and decrease in non-organic entries (813, down from 848 in 2022), along with a greater difference in the success rate (organic oils 68%, non-organic oils 75%) compared with the minimal 1% difference in 2022.

More information: www.bestoliveoils.org.

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Australian producers won six Gold and nine Silver medals from 17 entries, an 88% success rate. This compares well with the 65% success rate from 20 entries in 2022. New Zealand entries were well down this year, with only three oils submitted compared with eight in 2022: one entry received a Silver medal, the 33% success rate also well down on 2022’s 75%.

A total of 1170 entries from 31 countries were judged by a team of 21 tasters, with 596 Gold and 252 Silver medals awarded.

Italy once again submitted the largest number of entries (224), followed by Greece (146), Spain (135) and Croatia (131). Of these, Croatia repeated last year’s result as the most successful producing country, awarded 105 medals (94 Gold, 11 Silver) for an 80% success rate.

Monovarietal oils accounted for 624 of the entries and 498 awards (343 Gold, 155 Silver - 80% success rate), while 546 entries were blends, of which 350 received awards (253 Gold, 97 Silver - 64% success rate).

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Mobile: Kent 0428 829 024 Mobile: Michelle 0448 965 349 PO Box 114 Riverton SA 5412 Email: oops@aussiebroadband.com.au 20 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

News-Awards

(left-right) Best Flavoured Oil of Show: Rae Jefferies, Guinea Grove Farm with Carmen Ngo, The Label Factory.

Three Silver, two Bronze medals: Brett Roberts, Olio Bello and Rick De San Miguel.

Silver, Bronze medals: Catherine Lee, Regans Ridge Olive Oil and Rick De San Miguel.

Best Boutique Oil of Show: Jerome Kalwij and Jane Doepel, Seaview Ridge Olives.

Chapman River champions at WA Olive Awards Geraldton producer Russell Lewis was the man in the spotlight at the 2023 WA Olive Awards presentation event, collecting two of this year’s four major trophies. Lewis’ Chapman River Olives Queen of Spain and Coratina EVOO was named overall Best Oil of Show, and also took home the Steve Milton Award for Best WA Oil. The winning blend was awarded the judge’s top score of 93 and a Premium Gold medal, with an additional Silver medal awarded to Chapman River’s Coratina varietal EVOO. The Best Boutique Oil of Show trophy was awarded to Lancelin, WA producer Seaview Ridge Olive Grove for its Manzanilla Nevadillo Blend, which also gained Gold and a score of 86 from the judges. Seaview Ridge also added a Silver to its medal score with its 81-pointed Koroneiki varietal EVOO. And in a closely-contested class, the Best Flavoured Oil of Show award went to Guinea Grove Farm for its Lemon Pressed olive oil.

The trophy was just one of many awards for the Gingin producer, which saw success in both EVOO and flavoured oil classes: Guinea Gold’s Picual EVOO was among the competition’s top scorers, earning 91 and Premium Gold from the judges; its Frantoio varietal received 87 and Gold; and its Lime and Basil flavoured oils were each awarded Bronze.

Statistics

There were 58 entries in this year’s competition, 48 EVOOs and 10 flavoured oils, submitted by 31 entrants. This is a decrease from the 70 entries received last year, attributed to a number of seasonal complexities which saw some groves not harvesting this year.

There was no reduction in quality this year, however, with medals awarded to 42 of the 48 EVOO entries and all 10 of the flavoured oil entries.

Of particular note was in an increase in

2023 WA Olive Awards – Major Awards Best Oil of Show - Chapman River Olives Queen of Spain & Coratina Best Flavoured Oil of Show - Guinea Grove Farm Lemon Pressed Best Boutique Oil of Show - Seaview Ridge Olive Grove Manzanilla Nevadillo Blend Steve Milton Award for Best WA Oil Chapman River Olives - Queen of Spain & Coratina

Premium Gold medals, with four awarded this year (6.9% of entries, up from 2.7% in 2022). There were also seven Gold medals (12.1% of 2023 entries/15.7% 2022), 26 Silver medals (44.8%/40.0%) and 15 Bronze medals (25.9%/32.8%).

All up 89.7% of entries received a medal this year, close to 2022’s 91.3% and an excellent outcome in a difficult harvest year.

The intensity trend in 2023 entries was to robust oils, a significant change from the past two years of predominantly very delicate oils, with the average polyphenol level 370 and the highest 593. The Free Fatty Acid levels were generally around 0.1, with several exceptions.

There were four oils judged as defective due to metallic taste and oxidation, faults attributable to poor storage and processing.

Two further oils also received no medal.

For more information and full results, please email entries@oliveswa.com.au for a copy of the 2023 Results Book.

Best Oil of Show, Best WA Oil: Russell Lewis, Chapman River Olives and Olives WA President Rick De San Miguel.

Gold medal: Bruce Duncan, Clackline Valley Olives and Rick De San Miguel.

Silver medal: Jimmy and Jyn Li, Auganic Australia (Silver) with Rick De San Miguel.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 21

News-Awards

Champion Table Olive: Melanie Coid and Rob Whyte, Gooramadda Olives. The award-winning Kalamata was also named Champion Kalamata Olive at the 2023 Australian International Olive Awards.

Photo: Toni Harris, Alkermi Corowa.

Champion Boutique EVOO: Geoff Treloar and Jenny Masters, W2Olives. Geoff and Jenny also took home the awards for Champion NSW EVOO and Reserve Champion Medium EVOO at this year’s Australian International Olive Awards.

Three in a row for Gooramadda at 2023 Sydney Royal Fine Food Olive Awards Victorian producer Gooramadda Olives has cemented its reputation as a consistent performer at the Sydney Royal Fine Food Olive Awards, taking home the Champion Table Olive title for the third year in a row. Gooramadda’s champion-winning Kalamata Olives were also awarded the highest judges’ score of any 2023 entry, rated at 92.67/100 by the panel members.

In the olive oil competition, the Champion Boutique Extra Virgin Olive Oil award went to Wagga Wagga producer W2Olives for its W2Olives Extra Virgin Olive Oil. W2Olives added a Silver medal to its Sydney competition results for its Basil Agrumato olive oil.

Champion Single Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Commercial Volume was awarded to Northern Tablelands producer Glen Olives for its Frantoio EVOO, along with a Silver medal for its Leccino varietal.

The Champion Blended Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Commercial Volume award went to Wilson Family Olives for its Wilson Family Olive D’Or Picual/Coratina EVOO. The Narromine producer added a second Gold medal for its Olive D'or Picual/Hojiblanca blend and a Silver for its Picual mono-varietal EVOO.

2023 Sydney Royal Fine Food Awards – Champion awards Champion Boutique Extra Virgin Olive Oil - W2Olives EVOO Champion Single Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Commercial Volume - Glen Olives Frantoio Champion Blended Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Commercial Volume - Wilson Family Olives Olive d'Or EVOO Champion Flavoured or Culinary Oil - Rio Vista Olives Chilli Pressed Olive Oil Champion Table Olives - Gooramadda Olives Kalamata

And in the highly-contested flavoured oil class, the Champion Flavoured or Culinary Oil for 2023 was Rio Vista Olives’ Chilli Pressed Olive Oil – also awarded the competition’s second highest score of 92.5/100. The Chilli Pressed’s Gold was just one of Rio Vista’s medal haul at this year’s Sydney Royal, the SA producer earning a total of five Gold, three Silver and three Bronze medals.

Statistics

The 2023 competition saw 76 olive oils and 16 table olive entries. Despite unseasonably cold weather impacting this year’s olive harvest, this was a relatively small

22 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

reduction from 2022’s total of 82 oils and 20 table olives.

The extra virgin classes accounted for 61 of the entries, along with 15 flavoured oils. The latter included both Agrumato and infused production methods.

Medals were awarded to 90% of entries, as follows: • EVOO - 12 Gold, 32 Silver, 14 Bronze (three No Medal); • Flavoured oils – six Gold, five Silver, four Bronze; • Table olives – two Gold, nine Silver, four Bronze (one No Medal).

More information: www.rasnsw.com.au/ competitions.

THE LATEST UPDATES ON R&D WITHIN THE OLIVE INDUSTRY | DECEMBER 2023

R&D Insights contains the latest levy-funded R&D project updates, research findings and related industry resources, which all happen under the Hort Innovation Olive Fund.

Hort Innovation partners with leading service providers to complete a range of R&D projects to ensure the long-term sustainability and profitability of the olive industry.

Great questions and thorough answers at Nangkita field day The AOA’s extension events program for 2023 ended on a high note, with rave reviews for the field day held in late September at Nangkita Grove in South Fleurieu Peninsula region.

Host Mel Hollick provided a great venue and facilities for the program, which focussed on pruning, composting and the use of drones, while Mother Nature did her bit with fabulous weather. Add in expert presenters, and it’s not surprising the day was so well received.

An enthusiastic group of 25 were greeted by AOA CEO Michael Southan and Mel Hollick, who spoke about grove management practices on the property and the Nangkita Grove business model.

A session on the use of drones for grove monitoring followed, jointly presented by AOA President and grove consultant Michael Thomsett, and Dan French of Airborne Logic.

Dan’s visual presentation set out the benefits of using drones in

horticulture, enabling the on-demand collection of high-detail imagery and remotely-sensed data that can:

detect and display things that are hard to see at ground level (e.g. areas of canopy die-back);

accurately locate/measure/count/ analyse/report on objects/detail/ change over time;

help navigate straight to problem areas or points of interest.

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Grove management videos

Pruning and composting are increasingly ‘hot topics’ in grove management for our industry, as is the use of sensors and automation for better monitoring of grove conditions. As more growers learn about and take up the recommended practices, we’re seeing a real leap forward in terms of tree health and productivity improvement.

We all want to see that increase even further, and help is at hand via a series of grove management videos available on the AOA’s OliveBiz website. Taken at field days and workshops held as part of the industry knowledge transfer extension program, the videos provide information and guidance in the fundamentals of grove practices you can use to increase the health and productivity of your grove.

They’re a great learning tool for those who weren’t able to be there on the day, and an equally useful reminder for those who were, covering: •

Principles of Canopy Management/Tree Pruning with Andrew Taylor;

•

Making Compost - with Peter Wadewitz, Peats Soils;

•

Weather Stations, Remote Sensing and Automation - with Jon Lockwood and Tass Peter, OneTemp, and Nangkita Grove owner Mel Hollick.

You can access the videos at www.olivebiz.com.au under Projects - Industry Resources Videos.

And they can do it fast, with a monitoring capacity of up to 80 hectares in an hour.

There was then a demonstration with Mike’s drone during the grove walk, with an opportunity for further discussion during the end-of-day networking session.

Walk through pruning and safety The grove walk with pruning guru and horticultural consultant Andrew Taylor was undoubtedly one of the program highlights. A former olive grower and EVOO producer in New Zealand, with a background in pome fruit management, Taylor is now Grove Manager at Pendleton Estate and there’s not a lot he doesn’t know about pruning olive groves.

Taylor came equipped with his safety gear and started his session talking about the importance of ensuring worker safety in the grove.

He stressed the need to wear appropriate safety gear and use the correct equipment for the job, along

with the ‘golden rule’ of never cutting above your head. He also reminded attendees that not providing employees with the right equipment and safety gear is a prosecutable offence.

Progressing through the grove, the group looked at the different stages of the regenerative pruning process being carried out, comparing tree regrowth and structure at one, two and three years post-pruning.

Taylor also talked about the efficient management of prunings: breaking them down as you go into logs for firewood and branches left for mulching between the rows.

Composting trial The afternoon session covered another of the day’s main topics, with a presentation by Mel Hollick on the results of a composting trial undertaken on the property, supported by the Federal Government Smart Farms Small Grant: Soil Extension Activities program. The group then headed

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back outside again for an inspection of the outcome.

The trial looked at a practical method of dealing with wastewater from Nangkita’s processing plant.

The water is combined with hay and the resulting mulch aged to create a simple compost, which is then applied in the grove.

Taylor noted that the important thing with the trial was that the waste mulch was broken down enough that the pomace no longer burned plants or roots. He stressed that while the resulting compost/mulch is not particularly rich in nutrients, it allows growers to deal with production waste and provides grove floor coverage for water retention and weed suppression. Hence the practice is not about fast-tracked soil improvement but rather about re-use of available resources and management of costs in the grove.

Maximising yield while managing costs To that end, Taylor’s take-home messages were: Minimise time in the grove: do the necessary work as quickly as possible, at the same time trying to get the best grove improvements over the next three years - “time is money”.

Approach grove management from a business perspective: focus on the efficiency side of running a grove, maximising yield while managing costs.

Positive feedback Attendee feedback gave the day an overall rating score of 5/5 for the “very informative and very current” content which covered “a good mix of all aspects of the industry”.

The presenters were praised for providing simply explained and easy to understand information - which is just what a good industry field day should do.

The grove walk was the day’s standout session, the “excellent information” providing “clarity on regenerative pruning and knowledge on pest management”.

Experiencing a “real demo of pruning and comparison of different pruned trees” was deemed invaluable – as one attendee said, “seeing is understanding”.

The composting session also rated highly among attendees, who enjoyed being “outside smelling and discussing” the methods for “being effective with what you have”. Understanding the problem of dealing with waste in the industry, and the methodology available to re-use/re-purpose it, was another big benefit, with attendees praising “the impressive work done by Mel to tackle it.”

The tour of the processing facility and pomace production was also highly informative, providing “great overall explanations of the processes”, with particular note made of the opportunity to learn about two-phase versus three-phase processing.

And the “broad spectrum of great

questions” raised throughout the day were met with “thorough answers which weren’t rushed”, provided by both presenters and fellow attendees. One of the key benefits of field days is the opportunity to ask questions relating to your own grove situation, and the Nangkita event didn’t disappoint.

Neither did the day’s catering, which showcased locally sourced foods and producers, and upheld the AOA’s solid reputation for outstanding event catering.

Field learning to grove practice Importantly, all attendees said they learned new information from the presentations, predominantly around pruning and improving tree health but also around irrigation, scale treatments, olive processing, varietal characteristics and more. And almost all said they would be taking the knowledge back to their groves, and introducing new practices into their management regimes.

All up it was, as one attendee said, “An A1 day, hard to improve on. Thank you to Mel, and the other organisers and presenters.”

The composting workshop and videos are part of the Olive levy project Australian olive industry communications and extension program (OL22000), funded by Hort Innovation, using the Hort Innovation olive research and development levy, co-investment from the Australian Olive Association and contributions from the Australian Government.

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Olive Wellness Institute blogs make getting the word out easy The Olive Wellness Institute is undoubtedly the greatest tool we have in our mission to get the word out about the myriad health benefits of olive products.

Responsible for the olive levy investment project Educating Health Professionals About Australian Olive Products (OL22001), the Olive Wellness Institute (OWI) produces a wide range of science-based resources aimed at educating, informing - and myth busting - around olive products and health. They cover an equally wide range of formats, from podcasts, YouTube videos and e-books to information flyers and booklets, ensuring access across a diverse audience.

Most are available on the OWI’s website, which also houses its repository of peer-reviewed research reports within the Olive Science Database.

For those after something a little less technical, however, the OWI’s blog page is a definite must-go-to, especially when you’re looking for information to share with your networks.

Covering topics that everyone wants to know more about, in user-friendly ‘every-person’ language, the blogs provide a wealth of interesting - and useful - information.

And a new blog is added each month, so there’s always something new to point your social media and/or farmers market communities to.

Here’s just a taste of what’s on offer.

Extra virgin olive oil vs canola oil - which is healthier?

Canola oil is often heralded as one of the healthier and more stable oils to cook with due to its high smoke point

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Top 10 extra virgin olive oil myths busted!

There are many myths surrounding extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), from whether you can cook with it to how you should store it. With so much misinformation out there, the OWI thought it was time to set the record straight and bust the 10 myths they hear most often.

Not surprisingly, top of the list is “1. You can’t cook with extra virgin olive oil” – along with a range of myths around heating EVOO. It also deals with non-stick pans, the calorific value of “light” EVOO, the tricky label descriptor “pure” olive oil, and everyone’s most frustrating myth, that colour = quality.

Neuroprotective effects of olive-phenolics and low levels of saturated fats, but how does it compare to the well-researched extra virgin olive oil?

The blog looks at the differences between the two oils, and which one is really superior for health and cooking, covering production, fatty acid profile, components like polyphenols, antioxidants and phytosterols, stability and flavour profile. It even references a scientific paper ranking edible oils based on their nutritional quality (spoiler alert: olive oil #1, canola oil #17) and the ‘Bottom line’ provides a comparative recommendation for EVOO you just can’t argue with.

The Mediterranean Diet and Extra Virgin Olive Oil for Women’s Health Women face a variety of health challenges across their lifespan - with some conditions unique to them and others disproportionately affecting them when compared to men. Good nutrition can assist in the prevention and management of many of these conditions, and the Mediterranean diet and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) can play a key role.

The blog looks at the various ways in which the Mediterranean diet and EVOO can assist in optimising women’s health, covering cardiovascular disease, fertility, reproductive health conditions, mental health and bone health.

The conclusion is that overall, extra virgin olive oil and the Mediterranean diet can provide multiple benefits to the health of women across the lifespan, thanks to the antioxidant-rich healthy fat profile of both EVOO and the overall Mediterranean diet eating pattern.

The olive tree provides us with numerous bioactive compounds, mainly biophenols, found primarily in olive fruit, oil, and leaves. Olive biophenols are known for their biological activities in preventing diseases and maintaining health; they provide neuroprotection and could play a role in slowing cognitive dysfunction and the neurodegenerative process in conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD)1.

The blog discusses the biophenols in olive products scientifically proven for their health-promoting properties, particularly Oleocanthal and Hydroxytyrosol in EVOO, and Oleuropein in olive leaves, specifically focussing on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects against neurodegenerative diseases.

The conclusion that the dietary consumption of natural olive resources such as olive fruit, olive oil, and olive leaves is the best approach for a healthy brain and healthy body is definitely one to share around.

Access and share You can access the entire blog library on the Olive Wellness Institute website www.olivewellnessinstitute.org under the Olive Science - Olive Science Blogs drop-down.

Then do your networks a favour, and share them around.

The strategic levy investment project Educating health professionals about Australian olive products (OL22001) is part of the Hort Innovation Olive Fund. The project is partially funded by Hort Innovation, using the Olive Fund research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

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Access 2022/23 reports and more

The 2022/23 Fund Annual Report and Hort Innovation’s Company 2022/23 Annual Report are available to download from the Hort Innovation Annual Report Portal -www.horticulture. com.au/annual-report-portal.

The Olive Fund snapshot is on page 47 of the Fund Report.

Previous Olive Fund Annual Reports back to the 2017/18 financial year, and Company Annual Reports from 2015/16 to date, can also be accessed on the portal.

And if you want to know more about the nuts and bolts of the Olive Fund, there’s an overview of how it works and how it’s managed in the Growers section of the Hort Innovation website: navigate to the Olive Fund page and you’ll find the Fund Management dropdown in the top menu.

You can also access information on both ongoing and completed Olive Fund R&D projects under the Your investments dropdown, along with an investment expenditure analysis showing how Olive Fund investments are tracking against the industry’s Strategic Investment Plan (SIP).

R&D extension project outcome: Processing workshop.

Fund Annual Report 2022/23 released The Hort Innovation Olive Fund is the driver of industry R&D, with olive levy payments invested, along with Australian Government contributions, into initiatives to help olive growers to be more productive and their businesses more profitable. That also ensures the viability and growth of the Australian olive industry into the future.

Every levy dollar paid is hard-earned by our producers, so it’s important we all know how levy contributions are being used and what they’re achieving for the industry. Hort Innovation has therefore historically produced annual reports for each of the 37 industries whose levies

2022/23 Olive Fund investment activity snapshot Levy collected in 2022/232

$309,110 (2021/22 = $399,228; 2020/21 = $130,809)

Invested in R&D in 2022/23

$420,602 (2021/22 = $256,193; 2020/21 = $392,322)

Fund activity 2022/23

13 R&D investment projects

2023/24 activity

8 R&D investment projects

it manages, providing project information from across the previous year.

The latest edition of the Fund Annual Report, covering the 2022/23 financial year, was released in November. The new-format publication is a single consolidated report on Hort Innovation-managed levy R&D investment, with a dedicated snapshot for each industry.

Olive Fund snapshot The Olive Fund snapshot is on page 47 of the multi-industry report. It reveals that in the 2022/23 financial year $309,110 in levies were collected by the Government and passed on to Hort Innovation for investment, while $420,602 was invested in R&D on behalf of the industry.

The snapshot refers stakeholders to the Olive Annual Investment Plan 2023/24 which includes details on current and proposed investments, and Financial Statements for the Olive R&D levy fund (actuals at 2022/23 and forecast to 2025/26).

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R&D extension project outcome: Industry field days.

R&D extension project outcome: Grove management videos.

consumers and build demand across the domestic market for fruits, nuts and vegetables.

Consumer Behaviour Retail Data

2022/23 active R&D projects

(MT21004) - ongoing: providing regular consumer behaviour data and insight reporting to a range of industries, through the Harvest to Home platform.

Active projects during the 2022/23 year, including multi-industry (MT/ST) investments, were:

Australian olive industry communications and extension program (OL18000) - completed; (OL22000) – ongoing: delivering Grove Innovation newsletters, R&D Insights, field days, best practice workshops and more;

Educating health professionals about Australian olive products (OL19001) – completed: providing evidence-based health information and educational resources about olive products to health professionals and the olive industry, via the Olive Wellness Institute;

Olive industry minor use program

(OL16000) - ongoing: supports applications and renewals of minor use permits for the olive industry, providing industry access to safe, relevant and effective chemicals

Horticulture impact assessment R&D project outcome: Evidence-based information and educational resources about olive products to health professionals and industry.

to manage pests, weeds and diseases.

Regulatory support & response

co-ordination (MT20007) ongoing: providing the Australian horticulture industry with key information regarding domestic and international pesticide regulation, including Ag Chemical Updates.

Consumer Demand Spaces

(MT21003) - completed: identified and prioritised opportunities for the horticulture sector to engage

program 2020/21 to 2022/23 (MT21015) - ongoing: evaluating and providing insights into the impact of Hort Innovationmanaged R&D investments.

Pilot program - consumer usage and attitude and brand tracking (MT21201) – completed; Consumer usage & attitude research program (MT21202) – ongoing: providing a category tracking service to allow various horticultural categories to better understand consumer usage and attitudes and the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.

Data Generation Program for

Minor Use (ST17000) - completed; Generation of Data Crop Protection (ST22003) - ongoing: generation of pesticide residue, efficacy and crop safety data to support label registration and minor use permit applications made to the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA).

Australian horticulture international demand creation (ST21007) completed: delivering insights into international consumer demand across priority markets for the Australian horticulture sector.

R&D project outcome: Chemical regulation for pest and disease management.

More detail on these and other new, ongoing and completed projects can be accessed at www.horticulture.com. au/olive.

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Have your say on chemical controls via the Olive SARP survey The Strategic Agrichemical Review Process (SARP) is currently underway across a range of levy-paying industries, including olives, initiated as part of the Hort Innovation-run minor use program.

Data strength in numbers The level of industry participation in the survey will determine the ultimate accuracy of the data collected, so please take a few minutes to provide information on pest and disease issues and management treatment in your grove.

The industry SARP reports assist in ensuring the availability of and access to effective chemical controls for each industry's pest, weed and disease issues, and to address relevant needs and gaps.

The review process provides horticulture industries with sound treatment options for the future that the industry can pursue for registration with the chemical companies, or via minor-use permits with the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) for clearly identified crop protection needs.

Update issues and evaluate treatments The olive industry SARP was last updated in 2020 – and as we know, a lot can happen in terms of pest and disease activity in that time.

The current SARP process will utilise both industry consultation and desktop studies to identify and update which diseases, insect pests and weeds are of major

The olive industry SARP survey is open until 22 December. To participate, go the Hort Innovation website - www.horticulture.com.au and type ‘Olive SARP 2023’ into the search tool. Scroll down to access the link to the Olive survey.

concern to the olive industry. Against these threats, available registered or permitted pesticides will be evaluated for overall suitability in terms of IPM, resistance, residues, withholding period, efficacy, trade, human safety and environmental issues.

Prioritisation of the major pests into high, moderate and low categories will identify the olive industry's priorities and help determine the highest priority gaps in the olive pest control strategy. Suitable new or alternative pesticides will be identified to address those gaps.

Questions about the survey can be directed to Doug McCollum of research provider AGK Services at doug@agkservices.com.au or Hort Innovation R&D Manager of Strategic Crop Protection Claud Warren at claud.warren@horticulture.com.au.

This survey is part of the ongoing multi-industry project Strategic Agrichemical Review Process (SARP) 2023 updates (MT23001), a strategic levy investment in the Hort Innovation Almond, Avocado, Banana, Berry, Lychee, Macadamia, Melon, Olive, Onion, Papaya, Passionfruit, Pineapple and Summerfruit Funds.

This R&D Insights insert has been funded by Hort Innovation using the olive research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower‑owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition

National Conference gets industry interactive and engaged Canberra was the place to be in late October, as the industry gathered at the Ann Harding Conference Centre for the 2023 Australian National Olive Conference & Exhibition. The jam-packed program had delegates learning, questioning, discussing, tasting - and even cooking - as we explored a wide and varied range of topics relating to growing olives, producing olive products and running a successful olive business.

N AT I O N A L

OLIVE INDUSTRY conference & exhibition

Onboard involvement

AOA CEO Michael Southan said this year’s event was designed to be more interactive, and everybody involved got onboard.

“It was great to see such a strong turnout in terms of delegates, who were really engaged in all of the elements,” he said.

“There were some great questions asked of the presenters, and they really got involved in the interactive cooking and tasting sessions.

They also really enjoyed the dinner created by the CIT students, which explored the culinary possibilities of olive products - the feedback I’ve had on that especially has been really positive.

“There was also great informal interaction throughout the event between presenters, exhibitors and delegates, allowing additional opportunity for people to ask questions, get answers and also gain a better understanding around issues. I’m sure delegates went away

with ideas and solutions, while service providers got face-to-face intel on the issues they can look to helping growers sort out, and the presenters gained better knowledge and perspective on the industry.

“That’s one of the best things about a national industry gathering: everyone there is on the same page but with a different knowledge base that they’re willing to discuss and share.”

Plenary highlights

The plenary session program included a comprehensive range of topics, which covered all aspects of running a successful olive business from grove to office to sales.

While all were valuable, there were a few sessions which the delegates deemed as stand-outs.

Lauren Hamilton’s Digital Marketing - Big Opportunities for Small Business: The Future is Here was an overview of the whats, hows and whys of digital marketing in 2023.

Gaining the highest feedback rating, Lauren wowed the crowd with her approachable and entertaining explanations of all things digital marketing. A small business owner herself, she made the information easy to understand for the average layperson - not an easy task, given the topic is by its nature pretty technical - and convinced many that the benefits of doing more are well worth a little effort and investment.

It’s not surprising then that Lauren’s presentation was also the top-rated in terms of relevance to delegates and their businesses.

Dr Joanna McMillan also hit the spot with

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 31

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition

her presentation on High Polyphenol EVOO: Why Do I Want It and How to Get It?. While at the top of her profession in terms of knowledge and technical expertise, Joanna is another presenter who has the knack when explaining often complex information to ‘ordinary’ people. And for making it both interesting and practically relevant, especially around such an important and topical subject. That’s exactly what Joanna’s session was, providing invaluable information around the health benefits of polyphenols

in EVOO and the factors affecting their content.

And keynote speaker Campbell Mercer gave a really interesting big picture look at regenerative agriculture, providing background on the regenerative agriculture movement and why he went into it. There were plenty of impacting facts and figures in his presentation, which have no doubt inspired some attendees to look further into the management practices for their own groves into the future.

Conference 2024 program suggestions welcomed The annual National Conference is your event and the AOA’s organising team are keen to ensure that the program and other activities meet the needs, wants and interests of all attendees.

Planning is already underway for the 2024 Conference in Bendigo, and feedback from this year’s delegates has been noted, but they’re keen to also hear from a wider industry audience.

So if there’s a topic you’d like to know more about, an issue you really need dealt with, and/or a relevant speaker you’d like to hear, please let them know so they can add it to the discussion mix. The same goes for workshops, field tours etc - your feedback would be greatly appreciated, and help ensure the next National Olive Conference is the event you want to attend!

You can send your suggestions to AOA Administration Manager Liz Bouzoudis at secretariat@australianolives.com.au.

32 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

Hands-on highlights

Friday afternoon’s interactive cooking demonstration by food media personalities Michelle Southan (yes, she is married to AOA CEO Michael Southan) and Joanna Savill was another delegate favourite, providing both practical skills and great entertainment.

Showing an amazing array of culinary uses for Australian EVOO and olives, including explanations around the ‘perfect match’ elements of each product and recipe, the session fitted a lot of great cooking into a relatively short time frame. It ended with a delicious taste test of EVOO-based cakes and biscuits, and left delegates with new knowledge to take into their conversations with consumers about the flavours of EVOO and how they match with various dishes.

The event’s ‘wrap’ session, the Olive oil tasting mini workshop, was also high in the delegates’ popularity ratings. Led by AIOA Head Judge Helen Taylor and Convenor Trudie Michels, delegates worked through a range of EVOOs judged in this year’s competition and were guided through the identification of flavours, other attributes and even faults in each oil. It was a great introduction to the skill of tasting and

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition

Presentations and images available to view

evaluating EVOO, and no doubt provided the basis for far more confident blending of harvest 2024 oils.

And the field visit to Fedra Olive Grove proved yet again that olive people love to watch, listen and learn among the trees.

Following coffee and an introduction to the award-winning olive business by owner Jeff Konstantinou, pruning specialist Andrew Taylor and pest guru Robert SpoonerHart discussed and demonstrated grove management practices for tree health and productivity. As always, questions, answers and group discussion abounded, making for an invaluable knowledge sharing session for delegates at all levels of experience.

Team effort

Southan said general feedback on the event has been very positive, with plenty of enthusiasm already for next year’s event.

“The venue worked really well for our sized conference, we had great weather for the field event and other than a bus break-down, it all went pretty much to plan,” he said.

“Most importantly, people seem to have really enjoyed their time at the event and there were a lot of great connections made.

“Thanks to all the organisers, presenters, sponsors and exhibitors who made it all happen, with a special shout-out to AOA Administration Manager Liz Bouzoudis. She handles all the logistics around the event, as well as dealing with potential issues as they arise, and she does it all brilliantly.

“As anyone who’s had dealings with Liz knows, she goes above and beyond her ‘official role’ to get things done, and the AOA is indebted to her for all her hard work and dedication in putting the Conference together each year.

“A big thanks also to all the industry members who came along and shared in the experience. It was great to see and speak with you all, and we’re looking forward to catching up again in Bendigo, Victoria next October.”

The AOA’s trip to Canberra for the 2023 National Olive Conference and Trade Exhibition was a great success.

A good time was had by all who attended, with feedback confirming the value, relevance and benefits gained from both the information and experiences shared.

For those who weren’t able to attend, and for those who’d like to refresh on some of the detail provided by the speakers, the presentation powerpoint slides have been uploaded to the industry OliveBiz website and are now available to access by all members of the industry.

For easy reference, the presentations are divided into Day 1 and Day 2, and each provides an overview of the information covered.

There’s also a gallery of photo highlights from the field day, plenary sessions and Conference Dinner.

To access the resources, go to www. olivebiz.com.au - Events - Conference 2023 National Conference & Trade Exhibition Presentations & Photos.

The National Olive Conference & Trade Exhibition is facilitated by the Australian Olive Association , partially funded by Hort Innovation using the Olive R&D levy, with in-kind contributions from the Australian Olive Association and funding from the Australian Government. The event is also supported by a range of industry sponsors and exhibitors.

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2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition

Creative exploration of Australian EVOO and olives The annual Conference Dinner is always a great night, providing a chance for delegates, speakers and exhibitors to take a break from the information side of things and relax over a good meal.

This year’s dinner took the evening to another level completely, with a menu created especially for our event by Chef Shui Kabir and the student team at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) Restaurant. A celebration of our industry and the fabulous products we make, every dish on the restaurant’s menu was re-imagined to feature AEVOO and/or Australian table olives.

Menu re-created

Kabir is the Culinary Skills Teacher Hospitality, Culinary and Tourism - CIT Trade Skills and works with students undertaking the Commercial Cookery Certificate 3 course. They hone their skills by cooking for the CIT Restaurant, open to the public on one day each week for both lunch and dinner. Generally they work on a set menu for the whole of each term but Kabir said the AOA’s approach was an ideal opportunity to expand their creativity, something he’s always keen to do.

“I train them from the first class that if you’ve got one ingredient, you need to think what you can make from all of the ingredient, from the skin to the seeds. So we train them in technique, and also to think outside the square in terms of using ingredients,” he said.

“We actually have lots of industry events coming in but not like yours, with ingredients, and they have the normal menu. So it was really exciting to re-create the menu with Australian olive oil and olives.

“And our students are all from different backgrounds and know about their own country’s ingredients but not so much about

CIT olive recipes available to download and share Many of the delegates at the Conference Dinner were keen to access the recipes for our custom menu dishes, so Chef Shui has generously provided them to the AOA to share with the industry.

The recipes are another great resource for growers wanting to showcase the versatility of Australian olive products to their customers.

They’re now available to download on the OliveBiz website, along with the other Conference resources: go to www.olivebiz.com.au - Events Conference - 2023 National Conference & Trade Exhibition Presentations & Photos - Recipes from Canberra Institute of Technology, served at Conference Dinner.

“We talked about how some Italian products come not so fresh and you don’t know how long ago they made it. They also noted the colour of the Australian oil, and we talked about how some companies overseas put colour in there.

“They loved the olives too, although they thought some were a bit salty.

“They really enjoyed experiencing the difference of the Australian products; the freshness, the colour and the natural quality.”

Student benefits

Australian ingredients. So it was a great chance to show them ingredients which they haven’t used that much, and which are generally thought of as coming from overseas.”

Kabir said the students gained a lot from the exercise.

“They now have the confirmation that they can use any product in any other dishes – not just savoury to savoury but they can make sweet dishes from what is thought of as only savoury,” he said.

“Experimenting with the olives especially gave them confirmation of that, and they have no boundaries now. You gave them confidence that what they made was really good.

“The students all said it was fantastic and are still talking about the night. And there’s plenty of ingredients left, so they’re continuing to create with the olives and EVOO.”

The freshness factor

Respectful ambassadors

During preparatory discussions Kabir told the AOA team that they use Italian olive oil in the CIT kitchen, so a supply of Australian EVOO was organized to use for the Conference Dinner. The AOA and Fedra Olive Grove also provided local table olives to replace the imported product usually used.

Kabir said the difference was immediately obvious to the students.

“They said ‘This is fresh – it’s really different’,” he said.

34 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

AOA Director and Olive Oil Packaging Services owner Kent Hallett generously donated a case of his Goodworth Estate ‘Five Wise Virgins’ EVOO to the CIT kitchen for the dinner, and said he was blown away by what the students did with it.

“We’ve tried for years to get restaurants to use EVOO for our Conference dinners and if they do, it’s generally in bowls to have with bread and used to dress a salad or finish a plate. So to have an entire menu

2023 National Olive Conference & Exhibition

Australian Olive Association Dinner 50/50 SET MENU Meals will be served alternatively

Olive Focaccia + Australian olive oil

ENTR ÉE Grilled olive duqqa and cauliflower + pistachio tahini + pomegranate glaze (GF) Olive duqqa, made with black olives, sultanas, and nigella seeds

Smoked pork hock schnitzel + blue cheese aioli + green olive Dehydrated and grated Australian green olives sprinkled on top of the schnitzel

MAIN Fish of the day + fennel + macadamia + black olive crackle (GF) Fish cooked with mild olive oil. Crackle made with black olive paste and cooked tapioca, dehydrated and deep fried

Confit duck + braised red cabbage + green olive pesto + port jus (GF) Confit duck in mild olive oil. Pesto made with green olives, capers, and olive oil

DESSERT Australian olive pavlova + lemon curd + pineapple (GF) Meringue made with black olive paste and a drizzle of olive oil into whipped cream

Olive oil and chocolate delice + spiced plums + green olive sable Incorporate olive oil and melted chocolate to make delice and sable made with olives

(VO) Vegan option

(V) Vegetarian

(GF) Gluten free

(GFO) Gluten free option

(DF) Dairy free

We accept card payments only. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

All dietary requirements, vegetarian and vegan will be catered for on request.

CRICOS No. 00001K – RTO 0101 – OCT23 – 5361856269

re-created for us, with each dish featuring Australian EVOO and/or table olives, was just amazing,” he said.

“And the food was incredible. Each dish showcased the EVOO or olives in a different way, using different flavour and texture combinations, and every one of them worked perfectly. I don’t think I’m alone, though, in saying that the stand-out was the Australian olive pavlova for dessert - that really was amazing.

“Chef Shui and the students did a fabulous job in highlighting the flavour and versatility of Australian olive products, and I was really proud that my EVOO could be part of the experience.

“I think everyone went home that night feeling that great respect had been shown for our products - and that the next group of CIT commercial cookery graduates will be great ambassadors for Australian EVOO and table olives.”

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 35

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition - Sponsors & Exhibitors

N AT I O N A L

OLIVE INDUSTRY conference & exhibition

2023 Conference Sponsors & Exhibitors Face-to-face expert advice and information

Event sponsors and exhibitors are an integral part of the annual industry Conference & Trade Exhibition, directly showing their support of the industry through their participation in the event. Their financial support enables the AOA to keep delegate registration fees consistently affordable, while their attendance allows delegates direct access to the latest advancements in industry-specific technologies, products and services.

Most importantly, it provides delegates the opportunity to speak to the people who make, sell and/or service them, getting first-hand answers and expert advice – and discovering new ways to improve your grove, production and business practices.

Tornado’s Stefania and Paulo Blasutto with Ian Smith, New Norcia Olive Oil - WA (left) and Rod Lindard, The Olive Press - NZ (right).

2023 National Industry Conference Sponsors & Trade Exhibitors Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor - Sponsor www.olivebiz.com.au Australian Olive Association - Event Organiser & Sponsor www.australianolives.com.au Deltagen Australia - Exhibitor www.deltagen.com.au Eclipse Enterprises www.eclipseenterprises.com.au Hort Innovation - Sponsor www.horticulture.com.au The Olive Wellness Institute’s Sian Armstrong (left), and Belinda Thewes.

36 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition - Sponsors & Exhibitors

Modern Olives’ Ava Lopez (left) and Kirsten Jewett (right) with Chrissy Massey, Gilmore Valley Grove - NSW.

Deltagen’s Adrian Dinsdale (left) with Bruce Spinks, Wollundry Grove - NSW.

Modern Olives - Lunch Sponsor & Exhibitor www.modernolives.com.au Mount Torrens Holdings - Exhibitor www.mounttorrensholdings.com.au NSW Department of Primary Industries AgEnviro Labs - Exhibitor www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/labs Olive Wellness Institute - Exhibitor www.olivewellnessinstitute.org OliveBiz - Sponsor www.olivebiz.com.au Pellenc - Tea Break Sponsor www.pellenc.com Tornado Pumps & Sprayers - Exhibitor www.olivebiz.com.au Bob Choong (left) and Simon Robb, Agromillora (right) with Pellenc’s Luke Bennett.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 37

2023 National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition - Sponsors & Exhibitors Want to exhibit at the 2024 AOA National Olive Conference & Exhibition?

Eclipse Enterprises’ Leon Atsalis (right), with Carla and Nick Aoun, Snowy Mountain Estate NSW.

Are you a provider of goods and services to the Australian and New Zealand olive industries? Would you like to meet potential new customers in an industry-focussed setting, and catch up with existing customers face-toface?

If the answer is yes, the 2024 AOA National Olive Conference & Exhibition is the place to be, providing the opportunity to connect with growers and producers, learn about their individual needs and provide expert advice and solutions – on the spot, as the industry discussions are happening.

2023 Exhibition sold-out The 2023 Exhibition was sold-out, with a number of additional businesses left disappointed. The 2024 conference & Exhibition is being held in Bendigo in late October, so if you’re keen to sign up as an exhibitor please get in touch and register your interest now as spaces are limited.

Contact Exhibition Manager Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au and we’ll make sure you’re included in the initial event mail-out.

Service all year round NSW DPI AgEnviro Lab’s Asumi Willis (left) and Belinda Taylor (right), with Paul Miller, AOA Director/Paul Miller and Associates - VIC.

Throughout the year those businesses continue to support our industry through the provision of those goods and services - and that invaluable advice - playing an important role in producing the quality olive products that Australia is increasingly becoming recognised for. They’re out there looking for new ways to help you become better, more efficient and more profitable producers, and providing direct access to those tools.

Support the businesses who support your industry

The AOA greatly appreciates the invaluable support provided for the 2023 AOA National Olive Industry Conference & Trade Exhibition, and encourages all industry members to in turn support the businesses which sponsored and/ or exhibited at the event.

(from left) Belinda Boustani, Mudgee Olive Estate - NSW and Wayne Hoare, Antipodean Produce - VIC with Mount Torrens Holdings’ Jared Bettio.

38 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

You’ll find information about the products and services offered by all of the 2023 Sponsors and Exhibitors, along with contact details, on the Conference website: www. nationaloliveconference.com.au.

Olivegrower Profile - AIOA Best of Show

Receiving the 2023 Best EVOO of Show - Commercial trophy capped off the awards presentation for GRO’s Stephen Parker (left) and Lachie Ayton, with AIOA Chief Steward Trudie Michels.

Geelong Region Olives champions collaborative production A practical solution to an unrealisable dream has created a successful business model for Stephen Parker’s Geelong Region Olives and the boutique groves which operate under its collaborative umbrella. It has also led to international acclaim for the Victorian brand, which dominated the stage at this year’s Australian International Olive Awards (AIOA) Presentation.

Most awarded among Geelong Region Olives’ entries was the

Bundara View Koroneiki, which took home the trophy for Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show - Commercial Volume. Earning Gold and the judges’ equal highest score of 95/100 (an impressive achievement in itself), the Geelong Region Olives Bundara View Koroneiki was also named Best EVOO - Southern Hemisphere, Best Australian EVOO, Best Victorian EVOO and Champion Greek Varietal EVOO. That Gold was just one of 10 medals - four Gold, four Silver and

Applications of liquid compost are part of GRO’s grove management schedule.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 39

Olivegrower Profile - AIOA Best of Show

Mt Moriac Olives’ oils celebrate their varietal heritage.

Solve shared problems … or scale down

Having pondered the economies-of-scale conundrum himself, and found a successful solution to the hurdles of boutique grove production, Paker has qualified learned experience on the topic. We asked if he’d share some advice for other producers either making their way in the industry or facing those hurdles themselves.

“Collaborate with your colleagues and find solutions to the shared common problems that all small boutique groves face.

“Either that or simply be a hobby farm, and reduce the plantings to a manageable number of trees.

GRO’s tank house stores its impressive range of oils.

two Bronze - awarded to Geelong Region Olives’ extra virgin olive oils, for entries across its Mt Moriac Olives, Mason’s Creek, Barwon River Olives, Bundara View and Bello River Olives labels.

Background

Geelong Region Olives (GRO) evolved in late 2018 from Mt Moriac Olives, which had been acquired as a lifestyle asset by engineer Stephen Parker and his then wife in 2004. They were city dwellers with children and corporate careers in IT&T and accountancy respectively when the opportunity arose to purchase the established Mt Moriac business. It was just 1.5 hours away, and research concluded that management of the property and trees would be achievable in their circumstances, so they settled in time to harvest the May 2004 crop.

Mt Moriac Olives was planted in 2000-2003 with 1500 olive trees on six hectares. The main varieties are Frantoio, Leccino, Picual and Arbequina, with a smattering of Barnea and Pendolino, and the grove was planted on a typical 250 trees per hectare, eight-by-six grid pattern. The grove is essentially dryland irrigated but has capacity for irrigation when water is available.

Grow or get out

Like many others in the industry, Parker said he learned by experience that boutique olive production is a financially challenging concept and GRO’s creation came out of “the necessity to build a sustainable and viable business in the boutique olive oil market segment”.

“Ten or so years of trying to make a small grove viable was proven to be a dream that could not be realised, so in 2015 it was concluded that we had to get bigger or get out,” he said.

“I decided to stay in the game and make it bigger.

“The approach to expanding was constrained by capital and time, however: more trees were essential, and time was of the essence. It was clearly obvious that to plant more trees on the land would have taken close to 10 additional years to be fully productive, and the associated risk and expense was questionable.

“The approach taken was therefore to collaborate with many of our colleagues in our region, who were all in effect dealing with the same situation.

Taking the lead

“The nett result was that we became the lead entity and took on the responsibility of fully maintaining the groves of those who wanted to become our associate partners.

“Our payment is the fruit and our costs are the whole process, including sales and marketing. Our partners’ returns are either money, oil, finished product or a combination thereof. Their benefit is a maintained and productive grove that has market value and does not require any of their effort to maintain.”

The ability to do all that, Parker said, came from knowledge acquired both actively and from industry experts.

“Besides personal research in the early days, the best source of initial knowledge was by engaging Modern Olives as consultants,” he said.

“I also joined the AOA very early on and became a member of the Geelong District Olive Association. I got actively involved in the group, and we had field days and shared knowledge among ourselves. I was also involved in creating a data repository of members’ groves and trees.

“In addition, I pursued the mechanised harvesting of the olive trees early on and learned how to set the trees up for shaking from them.

I also used quite a few processing plants over the years and again

40 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

Olivegrower Profile - AIOA Best of Show Geelong Region Olives’ 2023 AIOA results • Geelong Region Olives Bundara View Koroneiki – Gold, 95/100 • Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil of Show - Commercial Volume • Best Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Southern Hemisphere • Best Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil • Best Victorian Extra Virgin Olive Oil • Champion Greek Varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil Geelong Region Olives Mt Moriac Olives Mediterranean Gold, 90/100 Geelong Region Olives Mason’s Creek Estate Corregiola Gold, 89/100 Geelong Region Olives Mason’s Creek Estate Blend - Gold, 88/100 Geelong Region Olives Mt Moriac Olives Estate Spanish Gold, 86/100 Geelong Region Olives Mt Moriac Olives Ligurian - Silver, 80/100 Geelong Region Olives Barwon River Olives Estate Tuscan Silver, 80/100 Geelong Region Olives Mt Moriac Olives Estate Tuscan Silver, 78/100 Geelong Region Olives Bundara View Estate Taggiasca Silver, 77/100 Geelong Region Olives Barwon River Olives Estate Picual Bronze, 72/100 Geelong Region Olives Bello Marco Estate Picual - Bronze, 69/100 Smaller volumes of a range of products mean the packaging crew are definitely hands-on.

learned lots from them, in particular Grampians Olives, Kyneton Olives and Oasis Olives.

“And experience has taught me that when it comes to harvesting and processing, the main thing for achieving a good outcome has been frequent communications with everyone involved in the process.”

Regional diversity

The other important elements, Parker said, are location and grove management practices.

“I believe our climate here is very good for olive trees, with moderate conditions and few extremes,” he said.

“We have four sub-region climates at work: the Bellarine, the Surf Coast, the Otway Ranges and the in-land Golden Plains. The soils and conditions are significantly different in each of those areas, yet they are all within 60-70km of the centre of Geelong.

“The diversity gives us advantages and opportunities. We are only at the beginning of the journey to understand the provenance of our sub-regions in the context of olive oils, but we believe that it will be a major differentiator as we evolve.

“We are also continually refining our processes, and one of the biggest changes we have been making over the past three years is

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Olivegrower Profile - AIOA Best of Show

Stephen Parker made an early move to mechanised harvesting and learned how to set up the trees for shaking.

GRO handles all the logistics around harvesting across its partner groves.

the reduction in the size of the canopies to 40 cubic meters or less.

Smaller trees can be just as productive, but use less nutrients and water, cast less shadows and allow better airflow throughout the groves.”

Promoting provenance

An important element of Geelong Region Olives’ marketing, Parker said, is the clear reference to the origin of its products.

“We own the oil, and sell and market the products by focussing on provenance and terroir of the various oils,” he said.

“We have a large range of boutique oils under one roof, which is appealing to trade, food service and consumers alike. We then choose, where appropriate and beneficial to ourselves and our partners, to use the brands that pertain to the property from where the oil comes.

Viable boutique model

“Our goal is for the region to be seen by everyone as the boutique oil producing region of our state and country.

“For this to be achievable, there must be a viable boutique oil business model and not simply one brand and a limited range. We see the region evolving to have a range of ultra-premium brands, a range of contract growers and a few bigger producers of quality value products, all hopefully with GRO as their supporting partner.”

Award-winning confidence

Recognition of quality via the company’s AIOA success is an important part of attaining that goal, Parker said.

“Winning the AIOA Best in Show and other awards has significant

benefits, and gives us confidence that we have the produce in this region to underpin our shared goals,” he said.

“The AIOA is the only show we have exhibited in and we have done this because we believe the methodology of the competition is the best we know of.

“Using international judges gives us more confidence in the results and is a wow factor when we explain how it works to consumers.

Everybody has said “… Well then, we better have some of that”.

Smart targets

After four seasons under the collaborative model, Geelong Region Olives now has around 20,000 trees, with some 13,000 of those productive. Parker says that’s just part-way to achieving their aims for both quality and production.

“We are targeting 60,000 trees and recently harvested 250 tonnes of quality fruit, which led to the AIOA awards,” he said.

“We are endeavouring to incorporate smart farming practices and Agtech solutions into our management operations to further improve quality and productivity into the future.

“In summary, I think our approach is different for this industry - although not unique in agriculture. We try to make it a winwin relationship and keep our associates informed with what is happening. We are confident that our associates appreciate our approach and what we are doing.

“It is a slow process to make it all happen but winning the awards is encouraging and gives us confidence to keep pushing forward.”

More information: www.mtmoriacolives.com.au; geelongregionolives.com.au.

42 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

info@

New Zealand - 2023 NZ EVOO Awards

South Island producers claim 2023 NZ EVOO Awards ‘Best’

South Island olive oil producers continued their dominance of the New Zealand Extra Virgin Olive Oil Awards, taking out all five of this year’s major awards. All 2023 Best of Class awards also went to oils produced on the South Island.

Robinsons Bay makes it #5

Best in Show went to Canterbury producer Robinsons Bay for its GB1, a two-varietal blend of Manzanillo and Nabali Mouhansen fruit.

Owners Chris and Annette Moore have been producing award-winning olive oil on the Banks Peninsula since 2006 and are among the New Zealand’s industry’s most consistently awarded producers. Along with myriad Gold medals and Best of Class awarded, Robinsons Bay’s EVOOs have previously taken the Best in Show trophy in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016.

The GB1 was also awarded Gold and the trophy for Best in Class Commercial Medium Blends.

Isobel blends Best Boutique

The 2023 Best Boutique trophy went to Isobel Olives and was again awarded to a blend, this time of Frantoio and Picholene varietals. The trophy-winning EVOO also won Gold and Best in Class - Boutique Intense Blends, while Isobel’s Koroneiki single varietal was awarded Silver.

A boutique grove in Rarangi, Marlborough owned by Chris Piper, Isobel Olives is also establishing a history of NZ EVOO Awards success, having earned several Gold medals in the 2022 competition along with a Best in Class award.

Judges impressed with Pressed Gold

And the trophy for Best Flavoured Oil was awarded to The Olive Press for its Pressed Gold Meyer Lemon Agrumato, which also earned a Gold medal and Best in Class – Citrus Flavoured. Additional Golds went to The Olive Press’ Pressed Gold Tuscan Herb Infusion and Pressed Gold Frantoio EVOO, with Silver awarded to its Pressed Gold Oriental Citrus, Pressed Gold Naval Orange,

Best EVOO of Show, Best Medium Blend: Chris and Annette Moore, Robinsons Bay Olives, Canterbury.

Pressed Gold Makers Blend, Pressed Gold Tuscan Blend and Pressed Gold Two Sheds Tuscan Blend.

Based in Greytown, Wairarapa, The Olive Press also undertakes contract processing for a number of other local producers and this year earned owners Rod Lingard and Katrina Bach the trophy for Best Processor for the 11th consecutive year.

Reserve major winners

Right up there in terms of quality were Reserve Best in Show winner Loopline Olives and Reserve Best Boutique winner Olivo.

A commercial grove in Opaki, Wairarapa owned by Stephen Davies Howard, Loopline Olives’ award for its Picual oil, which also took Gold and the Best of Class Commercial Medium Single Varietal award.

An additional Gold medal and the award for Best of Class Commercial Mild Single Varietal was awarded to Loopline’s Picholene EVOO. And Wairarapa producer Olivo, owned by Helen and John Meehan, also made its mark in this year’s competition, taking out Reserve Best Boutique for its Koroneiki varietal. The oldest olive grove in the Wairarapa, Olivo had a very challenging wet year but had a 100% strike rate, earning Gold for each of its four entries. Olivo also received two Best in Class awards; Best Boutique Mild Singles Varietal for its Koroneiki and Best Boutique Medium Single Varietal for its Picholene.

Best Boutique EVOO of Show, Best Boutique Intense Blends: Chris Piper, Isobel Olives, Marlborough.

Less intensity, more appeal

Olives NZ EO Emma Glover congratulated all of this year’s winners on their achievements, attributing the South Island’s success in particular to “dedication and hard work by the growers, higher sunshine hours and favourable growing conditions in the region during the summer”.

She noted that New Zealand oils are generally known for their robust and intense

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 43

New Zealand - 2023 NZ EVOO Awards

(Left) Best Flavoured Oil of Show, Best Citrus Flavoured Oil of Show, Best Processor: Rod Lingard and Katrina Bach, The Olive Press, Wairarapa.

NZ EVOO Awards – 2023 Major Awards

Best in Show Best in Show - Robinsons Bay GB1, Canterbury Reserve Best in Show - Loopline Picual, Wairarapa Best Boutique - Isobel Olives Blend, Marlborough Reserve Best Boutique - Olivo Koroneiki, Wairarapa Best Flavoured Oil - The Olive Press Pressed Gold – Meyer Lemon Agrumato, Wairarapa Best in Class - Boutique Mild Single Varietal - Olivo Koroneiki, Wairarapa Mild Blend - Athena Olives Grove Blend, Canterbury Medium Single Varietal - Olivo Picholene, Wairarapa Intense Blend - Isobel Olives Blend, Marlborough Best in Class - Commercial Mild Single Varietal - Loopline Picholene, Wairarapa Mild Blend - Waikawa Glen Blend, Kapiti Medium Single Varietal - Loopline Picual, Wairarapa Medium Blend - Robinsons Bay GB1, Canterbury Best in Class - Flavoured Flavoured Citrus - The Olive Press Pressed Gold Meyer Lemon Agrumato, Wairarapa Flavoured Other - Kakariki Olives Chilli, Nelson Special Awards Best Label – Lot Eight, Wairarapa Best Processor – The Olive Press, Wairarapa

Reserve Best Boutique, Best Mild Single Varietal, Best Medium Single Varietal: Helen and John Meehan, Olivo, Wairarapa.

What a trophy-winning EVOO tastes like …

“A harmonious blend of Manzanillo and Nabali Mouhansen olives, with fruity aromas on the nose followed by wonderfully balanced bitterness and pungency in the mouth.”

- Robinsons Bay GB1, Best of Show.

“A stunning and well-balanced blend of Frantoio and Picholene oils, delivering intense aromas of green grass on the nose with a good transfer to the palate. Harmonious, complex and persistent. Delicious!!! - Isobel Olives Blend, Best Boutique.

“Well-balanced profile with lovely notes of tomato on the nose and excellent presence in the mouth.” - Loopline Olives Picual, Reserve Best in Show.

“Delicate single varietal Koroneiki oil, characterized by its well-balanced and delicate nature.” - Olivo Koroneiki, Reserve Best Boutique.

“Good intensity and purity of lemon the nose and in the mouth, with a harmonious well-balanced base oil.” - Pressed Gold Meyer Lemon Agrumato, Best Flavoured Oil. flavours, however unseasonably wetter conditions preceding and during harvesting time in many regions this year produced oils of medium intensity and more delicate flavour profiles.

Praising the overall quality of the 2023 entries, Head Judge Reni Hildenbrand said the variation should be seen as a positive, as her experience is that high quality less intense oils appeal to a wider range of consumers.

The statistics

The Awards were judged by two panels, each comprising three experienced judges, to International Olive Council (IOC) standards.

The six judges then re-evaluated all of the Best in Class winners to confirm the major winners.

There was a total 119 entries, down from 152 in 2022, with 112 (94%) awarded medals – 32 Gold (47 in 2022), 74 Silver (88 in 2022) and 6 Bronze (12 in 2022). This compares

44 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

well with 2022 results, where 97% of entries were awarded medals, as does the medal percentage breakdown: Gold 29% (32% in 2022), Silver 66% (60% in 2022) and Bronze 5% (8% in 2022).

Wairarapa continued its reign over the regional medal tally with a total of 49 (44% - 45% in 2022), followed by Kapiti 14 (13% - 35% in 2022), Canterbury 12 (11% - 9% in 2022), Nelson 8 (7% - 3% in 2022), Central Otago 7 (6% - 3% in 2022), Auckland 6 (5% - 6% in 2022), Waiheke Island 5 (4% - 3% in 2022), Marlborough 4 (4% - 3% in 2022) and Northland 3 (3% - 3% in 2022), with Hawke’s Bay and Bay of Plenty each receiving 2 (2% - 7% and 1% respectively in 2022).

A complete list of the results is available on the Olives New Zealand website - www. olivesnz.org.nz -under the Awards dropdown.

Olive business

Co-operatives as a business model … … a collaborative approach to balancing profitability, productivity and innovation in small-scale olive groves Ceilidh Meo, Apulia Grove Recently I started researching co-operatives as a business model for our farm. The journey has led to an expanded understanding of the benefits of collaboration in business and I’m excited to share what I’ve learned with fellow small-scale growers.

Did you know that many local olive oil processing facilities in traditional olive growing countries in Europe operate as co-operatives?

It’s not a new idea to our industry, but one that could greatly benefit the Australian small grove sector.

So what is a co-operative?

Co-operatives are an incorporated business structure, based on the notion that a group of people working together will achieve more than a single person alone.

The co-operative business model is designed so that each member is treated fairly, has an opportunity to be part of the board and has an equal vote at meetings. So rather than a “top down” corporate company structure, co-operatives embrace the “grass roots” ideas of the membership base they are built to serve.

Additionally, co-operatives have a commitment to benefit their communities. In this example, we’re applying the model to a community of olive growers; specifically those located in Victoria, with less than 3000 trees under management.

Practical requirements

Perhaps you don’t meet that requirement but would like to be part of a co-operative with the aim of improving profitability, productivity and innovation for small scale olive growers? There are practical reasons for limiting the initial member cohort requirements.

Firstly, co-operatives are traditionally location-based because of the communities they serve. As I mentioned, with olives this has most often been about processing but another potential benefit which decreases costs is the increased bulk buying power of a group.

As past President of the United States John F. Kennedy once said: “Farmers are the only people who pay retail prices for inputs, receive wholesale prices for products grown and pay the freight both ways.”

In this case, having the purchased inputs delivered to a wide range of farm locations would negate the purchase price reduction by increasing shipping costs.

Another function the co-op might perform is collaborative labour inputs, and most members won’t want to travel too far to help out on another member’s farm. Indeed, many hired contractors won’t travel to service a single small grove, but if there are a number of small groves that can be serviced locally in a single day, everyone wins.

Initial interest on-board

For full transparency, while I love the idea of collaboration over competition, I wasn’t initially sure what sort of response I’d get to the idea of starting a co-op for small scale olive growers. It turns out that support has been very positive from a variety of growers, and this co-op has sufficient initial interest to pursue.

So if you are keen to get on board in the design phase of the co-operative, and we haven’t already spoken, now is the time to get in touch. I have some ideas as to how the co-op might be organised and the functions it might perform for growers, but as a democratically designed and implemented project, all voices are required in the initial stages.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 45

Olive Business

Cost and productivity benefits

Perhaps you are asking yourself why should you join your voice to the discussion? What is a tangible benefit that you might gain from being a member of the proposed co-operative?

It does depend on the final design of the business, but the main aim of the proposed co-operative is to increase the profitability, productivity and innovation of small scale olive growers, in that order.

So some ways the co-op might benefit the profitability of your grove include: • opportunities to increase household income through employment at the co-op and/or profit sharing from the co-op; • diversified income from current on-farm activities; • decreased costs through collaborative time and labour saving activities; • reducing input costs through bulk purchases of farm inputs; • reduced contracting costs through co-operative purchase of jointlyowned harvesting and processing (etc) equipment; • personal, professional and business development education opportunities for grower members.

Productivity benefits to your grove and business could be: • distributed investment through collaborative purchase of required, and capital intensive, grove management equipment; • efficient work activities undertaken by knowledgeable workers in a collaborative model to compound available time; • education opportunities for grower members, specifically aimed at small grove operations; • collaborative approach to knowledge sharing between members.

Opportunity for innovation

Innovation is something that I love to think about, but is often a challenge to undertake in isolation. My vision for innovative approaches to the olive industry include: • establishing a member-owned, centrally located, closed loop processing and bottling facility (available for external contract work after members’ needs are serviced); • establishing a member-owned, mobile closed loop processing facility (also available for contract work) with processing capacity between 200-1000kg/hr; • value-adding to olive pomace, to increase sustainability in the industry and further diversify income for the co-op; • giving back to consumers through community education, involvement and inspiration in how to use and appreciate the noble olive; • product and market development; • direct sales and marketing, agritourism avenues to engage with eaters; • engagement with small scale producers in other industries; • implementation of Internet of Things (IoT) data capture and analysis for increased production efficiency; • tracking and traceability of co-operative products from tree to table.

Co-operative structures

There are different co-operative structures to choose from when establishing a new business. Some traditional businesses such as law firms, software companies and retail outlets are “worker co-operatives” where each employee actually owns a slice of the business and has full input into the business development direction.

A lot of co-ops in the agricultural sector function primarily as “bulk buying clubs” for farm inputs, so that economies of scale can be implemented in some areas of small-scale production. Then there are “producer co-operatives” where primary producers in a certain industry band together for value-adding and marketing activities.

The co-operative structure I have in mind shares some elements from all of these examples.

• it will be owned by members, and they will share in the profits of the

business income (a distributive co-op as opposed to a not-for-profit model for most industry associations).

• members will be bound by a membership agreement (legal contract), which will outline the financial, time and other contributions required of members to maintain active status in the co-operative; • there will be different levels of membership, and each will have a say over different areas of the co-operative business activities; • members will have a full right to propose ideas for business development and activity direction, with the ability to vote on each proposal (one member, one vote); • members will have the option to participate in bulk buying activities, labour share and hire arrangements, capital raising for equipment purchases, product marketing, sales and distribution and other co-operative activities as they choose.

• members will be able to maintain their own brands and business, and still participate in aspects of co-operative activities as they choose.

This is by no means a comprehensive list, just an indication of how some of the structural elements of the co-operative have been thought out to benefit the members equally and on an “as needed” basis.

Interested? Let’s talk

As you can see, there is much to discuss!

From a legal, structural perspective, it takes just five people start a co-op, however it’s best to have all interested parties involved with the initial discussions so that the co-operative meets the needs of the many, rather than just the few. So please make sure you register your interest and we can arrange a time to discuss your individual situation regarding small scale olive production. You can also scan the QR code at the end of this article on your mobile phone, to go directly to the ‘conversation calendar’ and book a time.

Once we have effectively framed the issue(s) we want to address, we’ll bring everyone who has indicated interest in the project together for a Zoom meeting where we can start to frame the collaborative solution. This meeting will be scheduled for the first week of January 2024.

Want to know more?

If this article has you excited about the potential of a co-operative model for your olive grove, but you don’t meet the grower requirements of this initial project, I recommend reading the resources available from the Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutuals via their website: www.bccm. coop. This is the website for the peak body of co-operatives and mutuals in Australia and they cover a wealth of knowledge in more depth than this article has space for.

However, if you’d like to find out some of the common issues small scale producers are experiencing, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via ceilidh@apulia-grove.com.au. I’m happy to share de-identified information that I have gathered so far.

46 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

Olive business

Digital marketing: big opportunities for small business Lauren Hamilton, Digital Narrative

What should your website contain? 10 must-have ingredients for success When starting a new business or refreshing a tired and outdated brand, most people’s first priority is to build a high-functioning, great looking website. A well-crafted website is the number one tool in your marketing kit, helping to grow brand awareness, sell products and connect with potential customers day and night.

To create an online presence which will give you a return on your investment, here are ten essential ingredients to include!

Testimonials and reviews

Your homepage is your digital storefront.

It should grab visitors' attention, reflect your brand, and clearly convey your products or services, providing an engaging entry point.

Customer feedback builds trust and credibility. Positive testimonials and reviews show potential customers that others have had positive experiences with your business.

Google Business Listings are the best place to collect these.

2. ‘About’ page

6. Clear call-to-action (CTA)

1. A captivating homepage

The ‘About’ page is typically the secondmost visited page on any website, after the homepage. That’s why it’s critical to get it right. Your About page offers a chance to tell your unique story, build trust, and connect with your audience, sharing your business's history, mission, and values.

3. Product or service showcase

Highlighting your offerings with highquality visuals and detailed descriptions helps visitors understand your products or services and encourages them to make a purchase. Professional photos (at least three of each product) make a big difference in sales conversions.

Tip: Use ChatGPT to produce product descriptions if you’re not a confident writer.

4. Contact information

Easy access to your contact details, including phone number, email, and physical address, enhances credibility and encourages interaction. The same goes for your social media links (more on this later).

Ensure both are available on every page by adding them to your footer.

Effective CTAs guide visitors to take action, such as making a purchase, signing up, or contacting you, which is essential for converting visitors into customers. Think of them like signposts telling web visitors what their next step is, and make sure every single page on your website features a CTA such as ‘Shop now’ or ‘Meet the team’. *Book a free website health check with Lauren at digitalnarrative.com.au/book.

7. Mobile-friendly design

With the rise of mobile internet use - for most categories, it sits above 50% of all website views now - a mobile-friendly design ensures a seamless user experience on various devices.

If your site is not mobile optimised, you run the risk of people finding you on their phones and immediately leaving, because your content is unreadable on the small screen.

8. Engaging blog or news section

Regularly updating your website with fresh, relevant content not only positions you as an industry expert but also improves search engine rankings and attracts more visitors. A blog or news section is perfect for this.

Mobile internet use accounts for more than half of all website views, so a mobile-friendly design is imperative for a seamless user experience on various devices.

9. Social media integration

Integrating social media links extends your reach beyond your website, allowing visitors to connect with your brand on popular platforms and amplifying your online presence.

10. Analytics and optimisation tools

Integrating apps or plugins which help you track website performance, visitor behaviour and conversion rates allows you to improve user experience and increase conversions.

Building this functionality in at the start, instead of retrofitting it later, will save you time and money.

Then update

These ingredients are essential for creating a compelling online presence, regardless of whether you're building a new website or upgrading an existing one. Your website serves as a dynamic platform to attract visitors, build trust, and drive business growth. Regular updates and optimisations ensure your website remains relevant and meets your customers' evolving needs.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 47

Olive business

Australian trade marks: the secret ingredient for olive growing businesses IP Australia joined us at the AOA National Industry Conference in Canberra, with Trade Mark Examiner Tim Dehelean presenting on Protecting Your Brand IP - Trade Marks. It’s an important topic for everyone with a brand, so they’ve provided a follow-up overview for those who weren’t able to attend.

In the olive industry, where competition is fierce and consumer loyalty is vital, a strong brand can help small businesses to establish identity and stand out from competitors. One way to protect your brand is with a registered trade mark. Having a distinctive trademarked brand can help set your olive products apart in the bustling Australian marketplace.

What is a trade mark?

A registered trade mark is a type of intellectual property (IP) that helps customers distinguish goods and services from others. It can be a word, phrase, logo, or a combination of these, that can be used to identify and promote your brand.

Importance of trade marks in the food industry

A trade mark protects your brand. It gives you the exclusive right to use your brand in relation to the goods and services for which it is registered.

A registered trade mark helps to build trust and loyalty with your customers. It serves as a badge of origin, a recognisable identifier, and a carrier of goodwill.

When you apply for a trade mark, you need to list the goods and services you will use in relation to your trade mark. It's important to get this right, as this determines what your trade mark protects. More information on how to select goods and services can be found on the IP Australia website.

Having a registered trade mark means that if other traders of similar goods use your trade mark, or a deceptively similar one, without your permission, you have an avenue to claim infringement.

In the olive industry, for instance, a business might operate under the business name Delicious Grove. However, without a registered trade mark, another business could potentially use the same or a similar name. If Delicious Grove were registered as a trade mark under class 29, the business would have exclusive rights to use that name in relation to its olive goods, and could take legal action against any infringers.

Your business name vs trade mark

A common misunderstanding by business owners is that registering an Australian business name is the same as having a registered trade mark. While both are crucial elements of a company's identity, they serve different purposes and offer different levels of protection.

A business name is the name under which a business operates.

Registering a business name with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is a legal obligation for most businesses in Australia when conducting business under a name other than your own. However, a registered business name does not give you exclusive rights to the name. Only a trade mark can do that.

In comparison, a registered trade mark with IP Australia, the Australian government agency that administers IP rights, protects your unique brand and distinguishes your product or service from

The AOA’s OliveCare® and Certification logos are trademarked, protecting the integrity of the industry quality assurance program by restricting use to signatories’ compliant products.

competitors in the market. A registered trade mark provides a legal avenue to prevent others from using the same, or a deceptively similar, mark on related goods or services.

A trade mark is protected in all Australian states and territories for an initial period of ten years. It can then be renewed every ten years, for a fee.

Checking the market for other trade marks

Before applying for a trade mark, you can search for already registered Australian trade marks. There are two ways you can do this.

IP Australia’s free tool TM Checker makes it easier for businesses to check if a trade mark is available. TM Checker will provide some insight on whether your trade mark may be registrable, including whether there are any similar trade marks on the Australian register.

Alternatively, you can search the register using the Australian Trade Mark Search. It also helps companies to monitor the market for potential infringement by a new operator. More information, including helpful tips, can be found on the IP Australia website on how to search existing trade marks.

Need more information?

IP Australia’s website is a great source of information on trade marks for small businesses. It provides comprehensive guidance on everything from trade mark benefits and searching, how to apply for one, to how to protect and enforce your trade mark rights. Find out more at: www.ipaustralia.gov.au/trade-marks.

You can also view the slides from IP Australia’s 2023 Conference presentation, covering intellectual property and trademarks and how to protect them, on the OliveBiz website. Go to www.olivebiz.com. au - Events - Conference - Presentations Day 1 - Protecting Your Brand IP - Trade Marks.

48 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • December 2023 • Issue 130

Source: IP Australia – www.ipaustralia.gov.au

Products and services

Orora Beverage leading the way in more sustainable packaging Across Australia and New Zealand, Orora Beverage (Orora) provides innovative, state of the art packaging design and manufacturing solutions to customers in the beverage and food industries. Working within three primary packaging solutions, Orora crafts and produces glass bottles, aluminium cans and closures.

Australian made, world-class

Orora is a leading supplier of innovative glass packaging solutions.

From our world-class glass manufacturing facility in Gawler, South Australia we produce an array of glass bottles in a variety of colours to support the brand strategies of our customers.

Our state-of-the-art glass making facility produces the highest quality glass bottles for all types of products, from beer, wine, cider and alcoholic ready-to-drink styles, to carbonated soft drinks, juices, olive oil, spirits and more.

Our glass manufacturing facility in South Australia is one of the largest glass plants in the southern hemisphere. Working with our global partners, we continue to focus on leading the market with high quality, innovative and sustainable glass packaging solutions.

Customised glass packaging

Orora’s specialist glass engineers and packaging designers offer fully customised glass packaging. Together, we work with you to ensure our bottles perform at their best throughout the supply chain, from manufacture through to your consumer.

Premium olive oil bottle range

Made in Australia, Orora’s new olive oil bottle range is manufactured with the highest quality glass to create a premium cooking experience.

With an investment in new technology to create the elegant square glass bottle finish, the olive oil range is available in 1L, 750ml and 500ml varieties.

Create a premium dining experience for your customers and bottle your olive oil with Australian made glass!

Learn more at go.ororabeverage.com/beverageoliveoil, or contact us on 08 8521 4600 to discuss your olive oil packaging needs.

Issue 130 • December 2023 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 49

your calendar of olive events

What’s on

2023 Dec

Get breaking news on local achievements delivered FREE to your inbox: Register for Friday Olive Extracts at www.olivebiz.com.au

15 December AOA Office Closure www.australianolives.com.au

2024 Jan Apr

29 January AOA Office Re-opens www.australianolives.com.au April – dates TBC AOA Processing Workshop www.olivebiz.com.au 18 April Entries close, Oil China Competition 2024 – Beijing, China www.eoliveoil.com

May

Planning an event - virtual or physical? Let us help spread the word. Email your event details to Gerri at editor@olivegrower.com.au and we’ll add them to our industry calendar.

10 May Entries close, Olive Japan 2024 - Tokyo, Japan www.olivejapan.com October – dates TBC AOA National Olive Industry conference & Trade Exhibition – Bendigo, VIC www.nationaloliveconference.com.au

THE intra-industry way to sell, buy and source

classifieds Advertiser index Client

Braud Australia Eclipse Enterprises Modern Olives Laboratory NSW DPI AgEnviro Labs Orora Glass

50

www.olivebiz.com.au/classifieds

Page

2 5 7 11 15

Client

Olive Oil Packaging Services Digital Narrative Australian Olive Association SICMA

Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2023 • Issue 128

Page

20 41 51 52

efit

en Member B

e $100 Conferenc 1.................. x n io t a r t 22 Regis ................ $ 1 x r e n in AIOA D 50 x1 .......... $1 e e F y r t n AIOA E

Membership it makes

Member $ discount

OG & P ....... $4 n x4 .......... io t ip r c s b Su .. $60 Olivebiz ....................

1 x s d e ifi s Clas

DOLLARS and SENSE!

$336 embership Annual m 5 er = $22 s 5 ha grow t discount n e v e g in o Plus ong

**El Cultivo Del Olivo Book on joining $165 RRP

So 1st year membership benefit = $494 Peak Industry Body – Advocacy and Representation – Your voice to Government ✓ Australian Standard

for Olive oil and olive pomace oil AS 5264-2011

✓ Australian

International Olive Awards

OliveCare

The

Olive Awards

®

www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia .com .au

✓ AOA National Awareness & Education Campaigns – Everyday, Fresher Tastes Better!

✓ Biosecurity

management

✓ Grower field days

✓ AOA Facebook page ✓ Tastebook program

✓ Industry AU STRAL IAN I N T E R N AT I O N A L

✓ Consumer

and reporting and seminars

✓ Code of Practice

®

✓ Market surveillance

Industry Conference & Exhibition

✓ Point of sale

marketing merchandise

✓ PHA Biosecurity Levy

communications – Olivegrower & Processor, Friday Olive Extracts, Olivebiz

✓ Registered pesticide minor use permits holder for industry

✓ Geographical AUSTRALIAN & NEW ZEALAND

& NATIONAL JOURNAL OF THE OLIVE INDUSTRY

Indication representation

✓ Codex representation ✓ Industry Risk and

Crisis Management

The Australian Olive Association is the prescribed industry body representing all olive growers, certified importers and service providers in Australia since 1995.

JOIN TODAY and take advantage of the many member benefits and services.

Email Liz at secretariat@australianolives.com.au