ACORN AND OAK PROJECT ON KEA ISLAND, GREECE

OAKMEAL is an independently owned company with community strong ties due to our fair-trade practices and commitment to helping farming families generate income once again from the ancient Oak forest on Kea, an island in the western Aegean Sea, close to Attika. Farming families can now supplement their annual income from the sale of acorns (fruits of Quercus ithaburensis subsp. macrolepis) for OAKMEAL flour and animal feed as well as acorn caps for the vegetable leather tanning industry. All work involving the reactivated export of acorn caps is done by OAKMEAL on a voluntary basis for the benefit of the island’s residents. We believe it is not enough to succeed unless the community also benefits.

OAKMEAL produces acorn flour and acorn cookies and we are currently conducting research and development concerning possible uses in the natural cosmetics industry of tannin and quercetin-rich waste water resulting from the process for preparing acorn into flour. We are committed to joining new technology with past practices to create long-term security for the ancient forest and the local agricultural community, as well as sharing what is learned worldwide.

Local farmers also benefit from the managed introduction of processed acorn into the livestock’s diet, especially pigs, chickens and turkeys. Tourism on Kea greatly benefits from the attention directed to the island through OAKMEAL’s acorn activities. Volunteers from all continents benefit from a first-hand experience of techniques for harvesting and processing acorn for human consumption and animal feed. Worldwide readers benefit from the publication of the first ever book on the subject, “Eating Acorns”, dedicated to gathering, storing, processing and cooking with nutritious, delicious abundant acorns.

OAKMEAL has collaborated with researchers from several Universities in Greece and the USA. Decisions are made concerning best practices in the field with the guidance of Dr. Anastasia Pantera, Professor at the Agricultural University of Athens, Dept. of Forestry and Natural Environment Management (Karpenisi), active member and former President of the Greek Agroforestry Network.

OAKMEAL regularly sponsors workshops to teach best practices for caring for the Oak trees on Kea. Organic pest control and pruning techniques are taught as well as an ongoing awareness program to help stakeholders realise the economic outcomes resulting from proper forest stewardship practices. OAKMEAL has witnessed a great improvement in the local stakeholders’ understanding and ability to manage, rather than destroy, the ancient Oak forest. Currently there are 200,000 fully grown trees on the island and the potential for tens of thousands more through proper pruning of wild saplings and livestock management.

At the OAKMEAL product facility, fresh water is used sparingly and recycled through an organic, yeast based, sewage system. We have developed a solar drying technique for acorns and are now making solar drying tables available for farming families that wish to increase their gathering capacity.

OAKMEAL has hosted an annual Acorn Festival on Kea since 2011, to celebrate the tree, the acorn and the families that gather both acorns and acorn caps. Acorn foods, acorn crafts, acorn games and acorn folklore are shared at the much loved festival. A vital part of the project is teaching others the potentials and practical steps for eating acorns. The annual volunteer program receives over 1000 applications for a dozen places to work and learn on Kea during the acorn gathering harvest. The OAKMEAL acorn book, available on Amazon, is designed to be a handbook, field guide and cookbook to help anyone interested in getting started with this generally unrecognized resource.