NOTICE: Hard copies of the Australian New Crops Newsletter are available from the publisher, Dr Rob Fletcher. Details of availability are included in the
Advice on Publications Available.Sharn Hunkin
Sharman Olives Consultancy
Telephone: 02 6547 5171
Facsimile: 02 6547 5169
The olive tree, its fruit and its oil have a long and colourful history, intertwined with many civilisations, religions and cultures around the Mediterranean coast.
Evidence of the use of the olive can be traced back some 20,000 years.
Mankind has been trading in olive oils for a least 8,000 years.
The olive tree is long-lived, evergreen, hardy, tolerant of poor soils, poor water quality and drought.
Australia continues to import 98% of our total consumption of olive oil and table olives, valued at $98 million per annum, from the European Union and other Mediterranean countries.
Olives have been grown in Australia for nearly 200 years.
George Sutter landed at Sydney Cove in December 1800 and planted the first olives in the Governor's garden.
He returned to England but returned with more olive trees in 1812.
The Australian Olive Industry has never developed beyond a small cottage base, because of the low consumer demand, high labour costs and cheaply available imports.
Renewed interest in health and nutrition has increased the demand for olives and olive oil.
As a result of massive immigration, Australia's ethnic base has changed and this has influenced the cultural and dietary habits of the nation.
Dietary patterns and eating habits have changed.
Mechanised harvesting and processing has meant reduced labour costs for olive production both in Australia and overseas, especially since most of the world's olive producers have joined the European Union.
In Australia, land, knowledge, cultivars and technology are available to harvest, process and market olives professionally.
Internationally, Australia can exploit the perception the world has of our clean, green, food producing image.
This gives Australia great scope to develop the domestic as well as the export trade in the future.
All that is required is to encourage Australian farmers to diversify beyond the past traditional staples and to embrace new crops and opportunities.
Australian farmers should grow crops that are more in tune with our climatic conditions which can be sold on the world market at a profit.
It makes good economic and environmental sense to use our resources, land and water to our best advantage.
The olive industry is environmentally friendly and sustainable.
The Australian olive industry can control the whole chain of events, from growing to processing and marketing by adding-value at each production stage and being a major competitor with a high quality, world class product.
The existing fledgling olive industry in Australia is centred in South Australia and Victoria, supplying a growing boutique and very small export market.
The olive oil that is produced by these small operators is of high standard and commands a premium price in the boutique markets.
There is a risk that multinational companies will take control of this industry and with it the profits and leave us with the work, the risk and a meagre return on our investment.
Any claims made by authors in the Australian New Crops Newsletter are presented by the Editors in good faith. Readers would be wise to critically examine the circumstances associated with any claims to determine the applicability of such claims to their specific set of circumstances. This material can be reproduced, with the provision that the source and the author (or editors, if applicable) are acknowledged and the use is for information or educational purposes. Contact with the original author is probably wise since the material may require updating or amendment if used in other publications. Material sourced from the Australian New Crops Newsletter cannot be used out of context or for commercial purposes not related to its original purpose in the newsletter
Contact: Dr Rob Fletcher, School of Land and Food, The University of Queensland Gatton College, 4345; Telephone: 07 5460 1311 or 07 5460 1301; Facsimile: 07 5460 1112; International facsimile: 61 7 5460 1112; Email:
r.fletcher@mailbox.uq.edu.au[
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GK; latest update 6 June 1999 by: RF