Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor Magazine - June 2020 edition

Global judging for 2020 AIOA Spain

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Tunisia

Italy China

Australia The

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

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2020 Olive Awards

New Zealand

www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia .com .au

June

Rejuvenation pruning COVID-19 and marketing Food recalls and traceability Science vs Xylella

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Contents

Contents Incorporating Australian Olive Industry Journal Published by the Australian Olive Association Ltd Publisher Australian Olive Association Ltd Executive Editor Greg Seymour ceo@australianolives.com.au

June 2020 Issue 116

News Global judging for 2020 Australian International Olive Awards Review of AIOA judging structure Outcome pending on Health Star Rating decision More New York medals for local EVOOs 2020 Conference & Exhibition postponed

Regional round-up

Managing Editor Gerri Nelligan editor@olivegrower.com.au

2020 Royal Adelaide Olive Awards goes ahead

Advertising Gerri Nelligan editor@olivegrower.com.au

AIOA Best infused with Italian heritage

Production Sandra Noke production@olivegrower.com.au

Wollundry Grove canopy renovation: progress report

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.

Composting in focus: report, review and recipe

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 PO Box 6661, Baulkham Hills NSW 2153 Australia Ph: (+61) 0478 606 145 E: secretariat@australianolives.com.au ISSN 1448-5486 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 published will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions, or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published.

4 6 6 8 9

10

Profile 12

Pruning 14

Grove Management 18

Processing Processing 2020: different and distanced

21

Managing oil quality Best practice EVOO handling and storage Q&A: Malaxing; Controlling polyphenol levels

22 31

R&D Insights – Hort Innovation

23

New Zealand ONZ Focus Groves continue to reap bountiful rewards

32

Table olives ‘Secrets’ of table olive production shared

37

Pests and disease The fight to save Europe’s olive trees from disease

38

Olive business Covid-19 and marketing Thinking about a co-operative?

Food recalls and traceability 2D barcodes the future for retail food safety Labelling: the truth, and nothing but the truth

40 44 45 47 48

Olives & health Health round-up

49

What’s on/Advertiser index

50

Cover: The 2020 Australian International Olive Awards will be judged by expert panels in seven countries across the globe.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 3

News

Global judging for 2020 Australian International Olive Awards Medals, trophies, industry recognition, expert appraisal, promotion and increased sales … all the benefits of the Australian International Olive Awards (AIOA) are on offer once again this year, with the 2020 competition proceeding under an exciting and innovative ‘responsible distancing’ format.

AOA CEO Greg Seymour said that while COVID-19 restrictions have made the usual format impossible, the current environment has also increased the importance of the competition.

“Firstly, there are the personal benefits for growers while generally isolated from others and when things may be a bit tough: a medal and positive judges’ comments can really help you get out of bed and into the grove on a chilly morning, when you’d rather stay in and read the paper with the dog,” he said.

“Secondly, medals and trophies sell EVOO and olives, and get orders coming in.

Consumers love them and look for them; and they can be the decision-maker for retailers, high end food service, distributors and exporters when choosing between products and producers. A lot of producers have taken a hit in sales from the COVID-19 shutdown, and the opportunity to provide a boost is one we need to make happen.

“So the AOA’s competition organising committee put our heads together and worked out a way it could be held while adhering to the current guidelines and restrictions - and while ensuring the same high quality of judging, and event and product management, which the AIOA is known for.

“There were a lot of areas to cover, and a lot of technicalities to work through. We liaised with long-standing judges, both Australian and international, to work through possible issues, and found practical safeguards and solutions for them all. We’ve now got a really schmick organisational structure in place, and we’re all very excited about this year’s different and very welcome competition.”

The

AU STRAL IAN I N T E R N AT I O N A L Olive Awards

®

www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia .com .au

International judging panels

Competition convenor and Chief Steward Trudie Michels said a highlight of this year’s format is the involvement of judging panels across the globe.

“With travel to one venue out of the question this year, we will have six four-person judging panels in five states of Australia, along with another six international judging panels based in Spain, Tunisia, Italy, South America, New Zealand and China,” she said.

“Logistics and cost generally means we are able to have three or four international judges each year, whereas this provides 24 and they are spread across a diverse geographical range. A number have also previously judged in Australia, which means their palates are aligned with Australian oils.

“Along with the 24 highly experienced Australian judges, this provides an incredible opportunity for our producers to have their oils judged by so many top EVOO judges, and also builds the reputation of our high quality oils by exposing them to a wider international judging platform.”

Michels said each panel will be hosted by a designated panel leader, who is working directly with her regarding the protocols and methodologies for judging.

“We have chosen highly experienced panel leaders for each country and each Australian state, all of whom have accepted the position with enthusiasm. Utilising local stewards, they will receive the oils and other

4 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

materials and conduct the judging under our strict criteria, and will email the results to me for collation,” she said “Although this makes it a more challenging judging environment and takes longer logistically, we recognise the importance of panel judging in the competition process.

A panel tasting your oil provides a variety of experience and knowledge, and that combined expertise means a more fair and accurate score for every entry.”

Pre-judging benchmarking

Another differentiating element of the AIOA is the annual benchmarking session for palate calibration, usually conducted with all judges present prior to the commencement of judging. Michels said that will also occur this year.

“We do it every year and it’s important, and this year we’re just doing it a little differently,” she said.

“A set of oils will be sent to all 48 judges and the panel leaders will run that training in each country and state, again following our methods and criteria. This again is to ensure consistency across the entire judging cohort.”

Double chance to win ‘Best’

The 2020 AIOA will offer Bronze, Silver and Gold Medals, along with Champion and Reserve Champion of Class, Best of State and other major category trophies. This year, however, there are two Best EVOO of Show awards: Best EVOO of Show - Boutique Volume (less than 1000L of the winning oil commercially available) and Best EVOO of Show – Large Volume (1000L or more commercially available).

“We want to celebrate the fact that Australia has both small and large producers, and be able to communicate to consumers that at all of those levels we’re producing absolutely top quality EVOO,” Michels said.

“Having the twin awards gives all entrants a greater opportunity to win a “big one” and offers producers of smaller volumes a greater chance of winning a major award.”

News

Contract processors recognised

“We’re also going to acknowledge the importance of the processing element in ensuring quality. The AOA understands the effort, skill and knowledge that processors put into creating amazing olive products, so the contract processor of any Best of Show winner will be awarded with a certificate recognising their role.

“Contract processors in particular don’t usually get formally acknowledged but we know that quality products are the result of team work between the growers of the fruit and the processors, so we want to ensure that they also have both recognition and something they can promote their business with.

Benefits and opportunities

“So all up, we’re putting together some exciting new innovations to get the best result for our entrants, and we’re using our contacts, experience and skills to do that.

“With a number of state and regional shows not proceeding this year, the AIOA provides growers with the opportunity to have their oil tested, get valuable feedback

from an international panel of judges and, if not faulty, gain EVOO status and eligibility for OliveCare® accreditation.

“The AOA is also making the 2020 Results Book - an incredibly popular addition to last year’s competition - even more comprehensive. We’ll be emailing it to all entrants on announcement of the results, with hard copies available in mid-October, providing a great marketing tool for all medal and award winners.

“The international judges have all said that they’re honoured to be a part of this truly global competition and are taking their roles really seriously. Their enthusiasm shows the growing respect for both the Australian industry and the competition, and presents an unprecedented opportunity for international recognition of winning products and producers.”

Results

All entrants will be emailed their personal results by Monday, 5 October, including medals won and notification of any major award achievements. The email will also include a link to online decal ordering, to ensure medals are on winning products as quickly as possible.

With a gathering not possible this year, medal certificates and major awards will be posted to winning entrants – and the Olivegrower editorial team are hoping we’ll get some great celebratory images for the December ‘Awards’ edition provided by the winners!

Full competition details and online entry forms are available on the AIOA website: www. internationaloliveawardsaustralia.com.au.

CAMPAGNOLA Entries open: 1 July 2020 COBRA PRO Entries close: 4 September 2020 at 5pm CST ELECTRONIC PRUNING SHEARS Key dates

Post deadline: Australian entries - 20 August Major winners announced: 5 October 2020

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Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 5

News

Review of AIOA judging structure COVID-19 has seen changes in the way we do many things, and has vindicated the AOA Board decision to review the Australian International Olive Awards judging structure.

“Current restrictions have put a different perspective on the judging process and reiterated a previously identified need to look at changes,” AOA CEO Greg Seymour said.

“The existing system needs increased flexibility to meet the demands of a modern global olive competition. We need the ability to seamlessly deal with unexpected circumstances like travel restrictions, and cope with the ever increasing global footprint of the competition. We also want to better facilitate the growth of knowledge and experience at senior judging level, to provide greater skills resources across and to the entire Australian industry.

“While the review is underway, the board has extended the tenure of incumbent Head Judge Shane Cummins for the 2020 competition.”

The

AU STRAL IAN I N T E R N AT I O N A L Olive Awards

®

www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia .com .au

Panel format

One potential change being considered is a move to a panel of top level judges.

“Rather than the current single Head Judge, we’re looking at appointing a panel of highly experienced judges who would share the role, both from year to year and for the various industry support tasks the Head Judge undertakes throughout the year,” he said.

“The role is voluntary but very demanding.

A panel structure provides a way of splitting the workload during the year; and provides a sustainable way to maintain continuity at competition time if the Head Judge is unable to fulfil their duties.

“A panel would also allow senior judges to gain experience at the Head Judge level, which is great for individuals and also benefits our industry by growing the pool of judging expertise. In turn, that increases the ability of the AOA to support the state and regional competitions with high calibre judging support.

“It’s an exciting prospect and this year’s competition, with its innovative format changes to deal with travel restrictions, will be enlightening in terms of that decisionmaking process.”

Outcome pending on Health Star Rating decision The March edition of Olivegrower included an update on the ongoing action by the Australian Olive Association (AOA) and industry members around the Health Star Rating system (HSRS).

The flawed system currently ranks refined seed oils such as canola and sunflower above naturally-produced and healthier extra virgin olive oil. Following the Five Year Review maintaining status quo on the issue, the Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation requested that the Food Regulation Standing Committee (FRSC) reconsider the way edible oils are treated under the system.

Along with representations and consultations with FRSC members and Food Forum Ministers throughout the review process, the AOA

has provided an alternative assessment algorithm which could be used to calculate the star ratings for edible oils. It takes into account both positive and negative health attributes, unlike the current system which rates oils purely on the single attribute of saturated fat content.

The algorithm is one of a number of technical elements now being considered around outstanding issues with the HSRS, with a final decision to be made at the Food Forum’s next meeting.

We’ll update again in the September edition – hopefully with some positive news!

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6 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

News

More New York medals for local EVOOs Australian and New Zealand producers have once again done themselves proud at the New York International Olive Oil Competition, awarded a combined total of 12 Gold and six Silver medals at the 2020 event.

Australia: 100% Victorian

The medal count for Australian producers was five Gold and six Silver - a total of 11 medals from 16 entries. The 69% success rate is the highest to date for Australia at the NYIOOC. Interestingly, all of this year’s winning producers are from Victoria. All are also AOA OliveCare® Code of Best Practice signatories, as were all on the 2019 Australian winners’ list.

Most of this year’s winners cemented or built on their success at last year’s competition: Cape Schanck equalled its score of four medals in 2019, which included Golds for its Picholine, Frantoio and Picual varietals; Cobram Estate increased its 2019 score of two Golds, for its Reserve Hojiblanca and Superior Premiere; Grassy Spur followed up on 2019 Gold for its Picual and Silver for its Picholine; and Taralinga Estate went double Gold this year following Gold for its Picual and Silver for its Premium Blend in 2019.

New Zealand: region-wide success

New Zealand producers earned a recordsetting seven Golds from eight entries at the 2020 competition, an increase of three medals - and three Golds - on the country’s 2019 results total. New Zealand producers have now won Gold at the competition every year since 2016.

Olives New Zealand entered the five topscoring gold medal oils from the 2019 New Zealand Extra Virgin Olive Oil Awards into the New York competition. All won Gold,

along with two additional entries from producer Loopline Olives.

The Gold medals included three blends and four single varietals, and represent most of the country’s major growing regions, from Waiheke Island to Canterbury.

Stand-out stats

The 2020 competition received 871 entries from 26 countries, which were judged remotely by a 17-member panel. There were no Australian or New Zealand judges on this year’s panel.

A total of 584 oils received awards 396 Gold and 188 Silver.

Australian producers received five Gold and six Silver medals from 16 entries, a 69% success rate. This compared well with the 2019 total of two Best of Show, eight Gold and five Silver from 29 entries, a 59% success rate.

New Zealand producers achieved seven Gold medals from eight entries, an 88% success rate. This represented a dramatic increase from the 2019 results of one Gold and three Silver from six entries, a 67% success rate.

The three top-medal winning countries for 2020 were: Italy - 103 Gold and 36 Silver from 195 entries, a 71% success rate; Spain - 83 Gold and 22 Silver from 141 entries, a 74% success rate; USA - 56 Gold and 18 Silver from 120 entries, a 62% success rate.

Also of interest was the comparative entry and success rate of blends and monovarietal oils, which shows an increase in figures for mono-varietals: Blends – 165 Gold and 80 silver from 395 entries, a 62% success rate;

New Zealand’s seven Gold medals represent most of the country’s major growing regions.

8 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Taralinga Estate went double Gold this year following Gold and Silver in 2019.

Mono-varietals – 231 Gold and 108 Silver from 476 entries, a 71% success rate.

Heartiest congratulations to all the winners from the Olivegrower team – and best of luck to all producers for the coming 2020 Australian International Olive Awards.

More information: www.bestoliveoils.com.

2020 winners at-a-glance Australia Cape Schanck Olive Estate - four medals: Gold - Estate; Gold - Frantoio; Silver - Coratina; Silver - Picual Cobram Estate - four medals: Gold Australia Select; Silver - Reserve Hojiblanca; Silver - Reserve Picual; Silver - Robust Flavour Intensity Taralinga Estate - two medals: Gold – Robusto; Gold – Fruttato Grassy Spur: Silver - Coratina.

New Zealand Kakariki (Nelson): Gold Mediterranean Blend Kapiti (Kapiti): Gold - Picual Blend Olea Estate (Wairarapa): Gold - Picual Old French Road (Canterbury): Gold Picual Woodside Bay (Waiheke Island): Gold EVOO Loopline Olives (Wairarapa) - 2 medals: Gold – Picholene; Gold - Picual

News

2020 Conference & Exhibition postponed The AOA Board has regretfully announced the postponement of the 2020 AOA National Industry Conference & Exhibition, scheduled for October in Devonport, Tasmania.

AOA CEO Greg Seymour said that, like many other events around the country, the high level of uncertainty surrounding many aspects of the conference organisation meant the industry gathering could not be confirmed within the necessary planning time, due to the restrictions in place around the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While restrictions have started to be lifted at an intra-state level, there is still uncertainty as to what will happen with state borders – and also whether a second wave of cases may see things tightened up again,” he said.

“So there’s no guarantee that delegates will be able to get into Tasmania by October, and we can’t ask presenters and sponsors to commit to an event which may not be able to proceed. We’re also aware that some industry members may not feel comfortable with the necessary commercial travel, even if the borders are open and larger gatherings allowed by that time.

“So we’ve made the difficult but practical decision to cancel the 2020 Conference now, and put our planning time and energy into alternative events which will be more feasible to hold at shorter notice should conditions allow.”

Field and virtual events

Those will hopefully, Seymour said, include more of the AOA’s very popular field events, along with an additional virtual event program.

N AT I O N A L

2020

OLIVE INDUSTRY conference & exhibition

“If restrictions are lifted sufficiently, we will look to undertaking another round of field days in October and November – or as soon as we can get into the paddock and put them on,” he said.

“By then it may be possible to have some limited movement of people from interstate to run those field days as planned earlier in the year, but obviously we’ll just have to wait and see.

“The other thing we’re planning to do is run a Zoom virtual conference, featuring local and international research and development personnel on a range of relevant industry topics. This will be done as part of our productivity and profitability program, following on from the current weekly webinar series.”

2021 Conference

Seymour also confirmed that the AOA’s intention is for the National Olive Conference & Exhibition to go ahead as planned in Devonport, Tasmania in October 2021, on similar dates to those for the 2020 event.

More information

Further details and dates for the alternative events will be confirmed in coming weeks and announced in the Friday Olive Extracts industry e-newsletter. If you’re not a subscriber, go to www.olivebiz.com.au – Publications – to subscribe. It’s free, and the best way to keep up to date with the latest olive industry news and events.

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Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 9

Regional round-up

2020 Royal Adelaide Olive Awards goes ahead Disappointment spread quickly across the entire state as the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of SA Inc (RA&HS) announced it had been forced to cancel the 2020 Royal Adelaide Show due to COVID19 restrictions.

While the general public would miss their annual family fun day out, for olive producers it meant the loss of both the industry promotion at the event and the 2020 Royal Adelaide Olive Oil Awards competition, held in conjunction with the Show. The Olives SA (OSA) board decided that, if at all possible, they wouldn’t let that happen.

“We understand how important these awards are to growers and producers, especially in these challenging times, so we got together with the RA&HS to discuss the viability of running the competition independently of the Show this year,” OSA President Michael Johnston said.

“To progress the initiative, we needed to gauge the level of interest from exhibitors, so we sent out a feeler with anticipated details and asked for people to let us know what and how many products they would be likely to enter.

“We were heartened by both the immediate response and the level of commitment from exhibitors, which showed that producers are undoubtedly supportive of the plan.

“We’ve therefore continued with organisation of the further requirements and logistics, and are very happy to confirm that the Royal Adelaide Olive Awards will be going ahead in 2020.”

Woodside Farm fire rejuvenation field day Key details: entries open – 22 June entries close - 31 July product delivered - August 10-11 judging (EVOO and TO) - August 14 cost - $100 per entry “We anticipate that the results will be announced in late August, however at this stage the format of that process is dependent on the status of COVID-19 restrictions at the time,” Johnston said.

“We will make that decision a little further down the line but we’re hopeful that there could by then be some sort of gathering and celebration. And if that isn’t possible, we will ensure that the winners are promoted and celebrated as widely as possible through other channels.”

• • • • •

Entry

Full competition information and entry forms are available from the Royal Adelaide Show website www.theshow. com.au/competitions or contact enquiries@ olivessouthaustralia.org.au.

How’s your mental health?

Life gets tough sometimes, and depression and other mental health issues affect many of us at one time or another – in fact, right now three million Australians are living with anxiety or depression. But help is hand, with a range of mental health services available to access support at any time of day.

The beyondblue website - www. beyondblue.org.au - provides information and support to help everyone in Australia achieve their best possible mental health, whatever their age and wherever they live.

Take a look or call the beyondblue Support Service on 1300 22 4636 for support and advice.

And the Black Dog Institute’s website - www.blackdoginstitute.org.au - has a wealth of information on topics including: mental health and wellbeing; self-tests for depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder; e-mental health tools; getting help and helping others; and telehealth services.

24/7 counselling and support is also available from Lifeline Australia on 13 11 14 or Lifeline New Zealand on 0800 543 354.

If you need emergency assistance, please contact 000 (Aust) or 111 (NZ).

10 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Olivegrower readers would be aware of the devastating damage sustained by the grove at Woodside Farm in the December Adelaide Hills bushfire, and the fantastic clean-up work undertaken by Olives SA members and friends immediately afterwards.

Olives SA are holding a follow-up day at the property in July to assess regeneration of the grove at the sixmonth stage. There’ll be a BBQ for attendees and plenty of opportunity to discuss the ongoing management of fire affected groves – and other issues being experienced by growers.

Details are: Saturday, 25 July from 10.30am.

Woodside Farm - 49 Wuttke Rd, Woodside SA 5244 Please RSVP to Michael Johnston to assist with catering - 0419 815 839 or mj@johnstons.net.au.

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Olivegrower Profile – AIOA Best of Show

AIOA Best infused with Italian heritage Love and passion are synonymous with all things Italian, and for Kyneton Olive Oil’s Mick Labbozzetta the three elements have proven a winning combination. His love for tending olive trees, passion for quality production and pride in his Italian heritage saw the Victorian producer take home the Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show title at the 2019 Australian International Olive Awards (AIOA).

Kyneton’s winning Chilli Olive Oil was awarded an outstanding 94 points by the 2019 judging panel, also taking Gold and Best in Class - Agrumato Olive Oil before claiming the champion flavoured oil award. The company’s Basil Olive Oil had taken the top award in 2018, making it two years in a row as Australia’s best flavoured oil producer.

“You can smell the actual freshness of the ingredients in our flavoured oils.”

A taste of Italy

While Labbozetta is Australian-born, he grew up in a household steeped in the traditions of his Italian parents. He also spent a lot of time in southern Italy, absorbing more of those traditions – including the Italian passion for olive trees and oil.

It served him well in later years, when a family marriage brought olives and olive oil directly into his life and work.

“The grove belongs to my son in law’s family and was planted by his late father, Paolo Inturrisi,” he said.

“He had grown up among olive groves in Sicily, and worked in the industry until he migrated to Australia in 1960. He never lost his passion for olives and, while it took him nearly 40 years, his dream of owning his own grove eventually came true. In 1999 he planted two Italian varieties, Frantoio and Coreggiola, and Manzanilla from Spain, and the family would harvest and sell the fruit to Kyneton Olive Oil.

Fulfilling a dream

“After Paolo passed away in 2010 the grove was left abandoned, as my son-in-law didn’t have time to look after it, but in 2015 Kyneton Olive Oil decided to cease operating and the family decided to completely fulfil their father’s dream.

“They’d always told by the Kyneton guys that the soil was very good, the varieties that were planted were very good and the fruit was very good. Kyneton was a very high quality brand and would only buy the best fruit, so they knew that was true.

‘So they purchased the Kyneton brand, their equipment and the processing business, moved everything to Bylands where the grove is, and they employed me to run things. It suited both the family and me, as they didn’t have time and I was ready for a new challenge after moving on from the textile industry.

“I’d always been interested in the process, so I jumped into it and I loved it. I remember my late grandfather used to have trees and he’d take the fruit to someone to process, so maybe I got it from him.

Wherever it came from, I just had a passion for it and have enjoyed every day since I started looking after the grove.”

Learning the ropes

While learning hands-on in the grove, Labbozzetta did his homework on the production side of the business, sourcing information via both formal and informal channels.

“I did some seminars, I did courses in tasting and I spoke to quite a few producers and friends I have in the southern part of Italy, which is where my family comes from. I found out what they did and how they did it, and translated that back here.

12 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Kyneton Olive Oil’s Mick Labbozzetta collected the 2019 AIOA Best in Class Flavoured Olive Oil award, then returned to the stage to receive the Best Agrumato Olive Oil and Best Flavoured Olive Oil of Show Awards.

“It was all really worthwhile when I put all the information together – especially on the technical side when it comes to the processing and blending, and deciding how much of the essential ingredients go into things.”

“We have very strict controls on the temperature of our processing, and on where we store it.”

Point of difference

The Italian heritage of both families involved in Kyneton Olive Oil is an integral part of the brand, Labbozzetta said, celebrated in their marketing catchphrase ‘Australian made, Italian heritage’. To that end the company makes a ‘family blend’ extra virgin olive oil – the blending process literally undertaken by the gathered extended family. Kyneton’s main product these days, however, is their range of flavoured oils – which, while an Italian concept, Labbozzetta said was more about providing customers with a unique product.

“We wanted to have a point of difference and thought that with flavoured oils, when there’s produce that is out of season someone can still have it all year round in their pantry,” he said.

“So we did quite a few trials, got them taste-tested and got feedback from people, and refined our processes until we had the high quality product we wanted.”

Olivegrower Profile – AIOA Best of Show

Crushing difference

Labozzetta said their use of the agrumato method of flavoured oil production is an important element in the quality of their oils.

“Agrumato oils started in the Abruzzo region of Italy, where they first did them with lemon. It’s a natural method of introducing the flavour into the oil, and we find that there’s a significant difference to infusing it with extracts or essence,” he said.

“By putting their products up against their peers, producers set themselves a standard to achieve.”

“There’s a definite difference in the taste, and the quality at the end is far superior. You don’t have to be an oil expert to see it: you put infused or essence/extract oils and ours side by side, and you’ll notice the difference. You can smell the actual freshness of the ingredients in ours – and as with all olive oil, we know that ‘fresh is best’.

And Labbozzetta says there’s an additional ‘secret’ ingredient which make their oils so good.

“It’s the love and passion that we put into producing it,” he said.

“We take our time, we taste every batch that comes out and we grade it. We also have very strict controls on the temperature of our processing, and on where we store it. At every step there’s attention to detail.”

Clean medal sweep

That attention to detail saw Kyneton gain medals for all seven of its 2019 AIOA entries, including Gold for the Gourmet EVOO and Silver for the Ginger, Basil, Lemon, Truffle and Rosemary agrumato flavoured oils.

Labbozzetta said that just means they’ve still got more to strive for - and that the Best of Show win makes that easier to do.

“We’d love to win a gold medal for everything we entered. It would be nice if this year we entered seven products and won the champion award plus gold medals for everything else,” he said.

“A major win like this is important both personally and from a business point of view. It gives us personal satisfaction and pride in what we’re doing and it also helps out in the marketplace, when we’re selling and people can see our product has won multiple awards.

“And I think most of all it’s the passion and the drive it gives us to keep producing better and better every year.

“I strongly encourage all producers to enter competitions. We’ve got really good producers in Australia so by putting their products up against their peers they set themselves a standard to achieve, and it will help them try harder to achieve that.

“I’d also encourage everyone to be a part of the national association, and to join in making it known that we produce really good olive oil in Australia.”

More information: www.kynetonoliveoil.com.au.

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Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 13

Pruning

The OliveCare® program is all about helping olive producers achieve quality. With that aim, the Best Practice Series of articles discusses how to increase the yield of premium EVOO through best practice management strategies from the grove to the consumer.

Wollundry Grove canopy renovation: progress report Peter McFarlane, AOA OliveCare® Administrator

In the ongoing OliveCare® Best Practice series, Administrator Peter McFarlane discusses how to increase yield of premium EVOO and table olives through best practice grove and production management strategies. This article looks at the progress of rejuvenation pruning at Wollundry Grove, NSW, undertaken to increase grove efficiency and productivity.

As reported in the September 2019 edition of Olivegrower & Processor, Wollundry Grove owners Bruce Spinks and Joo-Yee Lieu are undertaking a major tree canopy rejuvenation across their entire grove. Based on recommendations by consultant Andrew Taylor during a field day held as part of the 2018 AOA National Conference, the project aims to address a number of existing grove issues – excessive tree height, a severe water shortage due to the protracted drought in NSW, and excessive leaf drop caused by the fungus Cercospora (grey mould).

The first cut

The June 2019 renovation pruning undertaken by Bruce at Wollundry Grove removed around 30% of the canopy which had become too tall. As can be seen from the leaf litter under the trees, the canopy is also suffering from leaf infection by the fungus Cercospora.

Also note the large chainsaw cuts are covered with white plastic paint containing a fungicide to prevent trunk fungal infection.

June 2019 - Eight months of regrowth following the October 2018 demonstration pruning.

June 2019 – the renovation pruning first cut.

Regrowth

The photo above is one of the Wollundry Grove trees pruned earlier

by Andrew Taylor during the October 2018 AOA Conference field day demonstration.

14 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

® 2020 Entries open

Showcase your EVOO and table olives to the world!

1 July – 4 September Don’t miss out

• • • • •

Global EVOO appraisal by 48 expert judges: » International judging panels in 6 countries » Australian judging panels in 5 states All EVOO and Table Olive entries compete for Best of Show Awards Every entry assessed and awarded on merit Comprehensive judging feedback for all entries Successful judging provides eligibility for OliveCare® certification

New this year • • •

Global judging panel format Twin Best EVOO in Show awards – Boutique Volume & Large Volume Contract processors recognised

Unprecedented opportunity for international recognition of winning products and producers

The

2020 Australian International Olive Awards Schedule

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

“There’s been a good bit of media exposure - newspapers, Channel 9 - I sat at home and people rang me for a story. That’s triggered a lot of interest in the oil and it’s really permeated the local retail outlets.”

Entries open: Entries close:

1 July 2020 4 September 2020 at 5pm CST Post deadline: Australian entries 20 August Results announced: 5 October 2020 Full details & entry forms: www.internationaloliveawards.com.au

Olive Awards

Geoff Treloar, W2Olives

www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia .com .au

Pruning

It shows promising regrowth, which in another year will be thinned to select new leaders to provide a framework for the renewed canopy.

When these new leaders have established a further old limb will be removed, and this will be repeated over the next few years until the entire tree canopy is renewed, reinvigorated and lowered to a more manageable height.

2020 observations: Bruce Spinks

This year has delivered a few messages. The first is all about soil moisture.

There is a perception among some growers regarding ‘off’ and ‘on’ years, where in ‘off’ years no fruit or low fruit is to be expected.

Another is that the hot winds burned off all the flowers, after the trees flowered well but didn’t set fruit.

I still hear these explanations, yet my few years and not much experience in olives tell me otherwise.

I am losing track of ‘on’ and ‘off’ years because of the harsh seasonal variations that we have been getting of late. The onethird loss of canopy hasn’t changed the yield profile throughout the grove - we have three blocks which received varying amounts of rain/ supplementary irrigation and these tell three different stories.

• Trees trimmed in 2018, with no irrigation for two years and only half mean average rainfall They have put on some regrowth but not much. They haven’t fruited. As yields weren’t an issue under the circumstances, some trees should have been cut a bit harder.

They’ve had the annual phosphorus application (though I think I missed in 2018) and preventative copper sprays to control any Cercospora; I’ve also added some potassium carbonate to the spray mix as an anti-fungal and as it probably acts as a drying agent to some insects. And it’s cheap. I guess the largest factor in insect suppression has been the hot dry summers, though, so I don’t want to read too much into this.

I haven’t done much else with them besides keeping the weeds down.

It’s not a grove recommendation to stay in business, as it won’t pay the bills, however it is probably in the best shape to bounce back. I’ll go through this year and cut out any excess branches on the occasional tree just to hurry it along.

• Trees pruned in 2019, watered and produced fruit last season There is just a scattering of fruit through the canopy this year and it can be small. The trees flowered well, but never set fruit. The typical explanation is that the hot wind burned off the flowers. Interestingly, the trees on the end of the row which is getting that little extra bit of run-off from the road have more fruit. These trees tried.

• Trees pruned in 2019, irrigated and fertilised this season The Manzanillo have consistently yielded while we give them three things - pruning, water and fertiliser. They’re also showing good regrowth.

The irrigated Frantoio have a decent amount of fruit this year, although smaller. One had a extra hole in the drip line and if you compare it to the trees next to it, it tells you that they all wanted even more water. They have had the recommended extra fertiliser, the extra bit of compost and the additional fungicides, and have more advanced regrowth.

The irrigated Corregiolo is covered in fruit. Like the Frantoio, the fruit is generally on the small size but at least there is a reasonable yield.

The take home message is that in a hot dry year, like the summer that we have just had, when using drips you can’t overwater. Any areas that got more water, say from a broken line or leak, have more fruit. It is chalk and cheese.

Managing limited water April 2020: Frantoio, no irrigation and only half mean rainfall – sparse regrowth, no fruit.

16 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Our strategy of managing limited water includes maintaining groundcover (mulch), reducing weed competition, pruning off excess

Pruning

April 2020: Manzanillo, irrigated – good regrowth and yield.

canopy and putting water resources into a smaller area. The pruning waste can be the start of the groundcover.

We re-watered the productive area of olives from the 2018 season as I figured that, given the harsh 2019 season which had been forecast, that area would be in better shape soil moisture wise because of the previous year’s irrigation.

We had already cut down what we watered in 2018 with an ‘uncropped, non-irrigated but pruned’ olive area (which didn’t produce any fruit), and expanded this area even further given the rainfall pattern and forecast. Rainfall over the past two years was only half our annual averages, so the yearly rainfall by itself was not contributing significantly to available soil moisture reserves.

In hindsight, on some trees I should probably have pruned a bit harder, as the lack of water meant that they didn’t put out much new growth at all.

Nutrition and disease control

With limited soil moisture I am putting on nutrient foliar sprays. I basically give it a ‘hit’ two to three weeks before flowering and then see how the season pans out as to whether it gets any more. As well, the trees get their annual dose of single super @130kg/ha, which adds phosphorus, calcium and sulphur.

We are also getting on top of Cercospora just by using copper sprays as a preventative.”

Production outlook

The production outlook has improved with the late rains we’ve had.

It’s taking a lot of stress out of the trees, allowing them to concentrate on late fruit development, and the most productive trees from last year are again fully loaded this year.

The hardest thing to do early in the season is to decide what area you need to water and then stick to that. Once flowering is finished

OliveCare® Best Practice canopy management • • •

tree shaping to meet optimal canopy volume and meet harvest method requirements maintenance pruning to manage biennial bearing and achieve optimal light penetration and air flow renovation pruning on older trees to lower tree height and generate new fruiting wood

and the fruit has set the decision is made for you, as anything stressed will just abort fruit and flowers.

Recording rainfall is important, as it gives signature signals as to potential yields and management decisions if rain is a main part of your water inputs. A wet year has some carryover into the next season and conversely, like the last two dry years, it also works the other way.

So if we can get a reasonable winter rainfall this year, the subsoil moisture can recover and I will be looking to put the ‘dry’ area back into production.

But for this year, despite drought, smoke, fire (or the threat of it) and COVID-19, we will have some fruit to process shortly.”

Progress updates

We’ll continue to update annually in Olivegrower & Processor on the Wollundry Grove pruning renovation, reporting on Bruce and JooYee’s activities, observations and the results of their efforts.

More information:

Wollundry Grove Olives - www.wollundrygroveolives.com.au.

Contact Bruce and Joo-Yee at admin@wollundrygrove.com.au or (02) 6924 6494.

OliveCare® - www.australianolives.com.au. Contact Peter McFarlane, AOA OliveCare® Code of Best Practice Administrator at olivecare@ australianolives.com.au or 0418 839 836.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 17

Grove management

Composting in focus: report, review and recipe The fifth in a series of reviews on early olive R&D reports has highlighted an important industry resource for the management of olive processing waste. In a timely release, soil specialist John Barton’s review points to the increasing opportunities presented by the composting of olive waste, and the benefits for both the environment and our groves.

Here’s an overview of both the report and the review, along with user-friendly information to get you started on compost production and use in your grove.

The report: Recycling Solid Waste from the Olive Oil Extraction Process

As part the AOA’s review of olive R&D reports published from 2000 to 2013, a review report has recently been published covering the publication Recycling Solid Waste from the Olive Oil Extraction Process; RIRDC Publication 08-165, October 2008; Author(s): Assoc. N.G. Tan Nair, Julie Markham.

The report looks at the development of an environmentally sustainable system to manage solid waste from olive oil mill extraction processes, which result in significant quantities of solid and liquid wastes generated to the detriment of the

Photo by Gabriel Jimenez on Unsplash

18 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

environment. The industry is faced with the challenge to manage these wastes in order to achieve sustainable production in a clean environment.

The research was done over three years at three sites in New South Wales, using olive waste collected from the 2005-2007 harvests. The research work reported is important because it provides the industry with a tool to recycle processed oil mill waste to improve the health of the crop and the status of the soil.

The review

The review was undertaken by soil and composting specialist John Barton, of Charton & Bang, a keynote speaker at the 2019 AOA National Olive Industry Conference & Exhibition.

Barton found that, while the age of the report creates limitations, the information remains extremely valuable for the management of olive mill waste (OMW) in Australia.

“Despite the research that has followed this document, it still remains relevant. It shows that OMW can be composted successfully under Australian conditions for a moderate cost. Its findings have not been disproved, but rather added to,” he said.

Barton cites “a swathe of further research across the world into the benefits of composting olive mill waste”, some of which specifically addresses the beneficial re-use of composted OMW back into olive orchards.

He notes that the research “provides a powerful case for recycling OMW” and provides details for further reference.

He also believes that the report’s benefit to olive producers could be improved by an addendum and further local research.

“This would include appropriate application rates and methods of composted OMW, along with costs and projected profits, resulting in a practical guide to composting OMW and applying compost in Australian conditions,” he said.

And he concludes that, while the trial described “appears to use a relatively simple and straightforward composting method that is accessible to most olive producers, it does not provide adequate instructions on how to perform this composting process.”

Grove management

Composting in your grove

To help fill the information gap for the time being, Barton has provided Olivegrower with some user-friendly practical advice on composting focussed specifically on olive waste.

Most growers will have plenty of that post-harvest/processing, so you can get ‘cooking’ with the step-by-step recipe, then use the recommendations on application rates and timing in a few months’ time.

John Barton’s olive waste compost recipe • 45% grove processing waste • 45% chipped grove prunings/ spoiled grass hay or cereal straw • 10% animal manure (cow, sheep, pig or chicken) • Plus 1 tonne water per tonne of dry compost mix

It will be necessary to turn the compost as it ‘cooks’. Over a period of 12 weeks it would need to be turned four to six times, plus plenty of mixing during preparation.

How long does it take?

I would suggest 12 weeks is a good time period for the composting process, but six weeks with three turns could produce something useful. Going longer is never a problem for the compost, as it just gets better over time.

How much compost do I use?

There's unlikely to be a response with less than 5m3/ha. The upper end of a positive response would be at 100m3/ ha, but is probably uneconomic. A rate of 20m3/ha is probably a good balance.

For a traditionally spaced 6m x 8m grove (208 trees/ha) this equates to around 100 L/tree, or around one wheelbarrow/tree.

How often do I apply?

Annually is good, but every two years is also fine. If you're applying compost for the soil health benefits, as opposed to nutrition supply (which would need to be yearly), sometimes you can go even longer if you combine it with good allround management.

If you were a purely conventional grower, with little ground cover and lots of chemical fertiliser, I'd say do it every year to help repair the soil from the year's wear and tear. If you're right into regenerative farming and have living plant cover all year round and organic sources of nutrients, then a first application of good quality compost might be all your soil needs for years afterwards.

More information

Barton’s full review document can be accessed from the article Review of report on recycling solid waste in the Grove Innovation News section of the OliveBiz website - www.olivebiz.com.au.

The original RIRDC report on composting is available for download from the Agrifutures website - www.agrifutures.com.au.

Stop pests and diseases at the gate!

With pests and diseases like Xylella fastidiosa increasingly a threat to Australian groves, the need for good farm biosecurity practices is even greater. And as the best cure is prevention, keeping intruders (in this case, of the pest and disease type) out of your property is the first line of defence.

Stop them at the gate with these eye-catching Farm Biosecurity signs, available through the Australian Olive Association’s online shop.

… while boosting your emergency contactability

Agriculture Victoria officers also gained a new perspective on the value of the biosecurity signs in the aftermath of the devastating 2019-2020 summer bushfires.

Faced with the difficult task of contacting farmers and land holders affected by fire to assess damage and their urgent needs for assistance, they found contacting farming landholders in the fire ravaged areas was challenging due to out-dated database contact details. Property Identification Codes (PICs) were useful but there were gaps in the records, as PICs are only compulsory for nonlivestock producers who grow grapes or potatoes.

Which is where biosecurity signs came into their own: mounted in prominent locations and easily seen from the road, they provided property owners’ mobile phone numbers – crucial for ready contact when infrastructure landlines were often not functional.

And as roadblocks meant many property owners could not get to their property for weeks after the fire, Agricultural Officers with special permits and Australian Defence Force escorts were also able to report damage assessments to farmers who were not present on their properties.

An invaluable addition to all agricultural properties, we reckon – if you haven’t got at least one, order yours now!

Details: The Farm Biosecurity signs consist of a 5mm Corflute panel measuring 600 x 900mm, UV laminated with four eyelets for attachment. The cost is just $40 per sign plus postage.

For delivery within Australia, order now at www.australianolives. com.au/pos-material. For overseas shipment, please email quantities and parcel delivery address to Liz Bouzoudis at secretariat@ australianolives.com.au. *Note: as of August 2019, new signage wording is required in NSW to be protected under the new NSW Biosecurity Regulation.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 19

Processing

Register of small-batch processors – are you listed?

Thanks to all the small-batch processors who have sent us their details: they’re now on our register, which we reference to connect processors with people wanting to utilise their services.

The Olivegrower and AOA team regularly receive enquiries from people looking for small-batch processors, so we’ve put a register together which enables us to connect producers with small crops and processors who can process for them, to the mutual benefit of both.

We’d like to include all processors across Australia and New Zealand willing and able to process small batches of olives, both individually and also those offering group crushings.

If this is you, please send your details to Olivegrower editor Gerri Nelligan, including contact and pricing details, minimum quantities required, and whether you will crush individually or on a “mix and percentage” basis.

We’ve got a good list already, and it’s worked well in recent years, so we’re keen to make the register as complete as possible. Please send us your details so we can add you to the list – it could mean valuable additional work for your business.

In particular, we’re keen to hear from small batch processors in New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland.

To be included on the register, please email your details to Olivegrower editor Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au.

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Hayley: 0428 891 581 20 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

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Processing

Rio Vista Olives’ Jared Bettio was one of many processors with strict social distancing requirements in place this year, with growers instructed to stay in their vehicles during fruit off-load and oil delivery. New producer Daniel McLoughlin of Long Flat missed watching his fruit being processed but was chuffed nonetheless with the results of his first crop.

Processing 2020: different and distanced The COVID-19 pandemic has affected our lives in myriad ways but, as a designated essential service, horticulture dodged a bullet in terms of the shutdown restrictions. With the 2020 olive harvest on our doorsteps when the virus hit, it would have been devastating for our industry had we been obliged to bunker down and see our fruit ripen and be left to drop.

We all appreciated the opportunity to get on with it and have gone about the harvest with an awareness of the need to protect ourselves and others from the spread of COVID-19. Picking crews were in many cases sourced differently this year, and followed strict distancing and hygiene rules, while processors also introduced special arrangements.

Heads-up for growers

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Pre-empting a little confusion over the new requirements, Olives SA sent out a list of processors operating this year, with a heads-up to growers on ‘what you should do if you want them to handle your fruit’.

“Mostly they wanted growers to stay in their vehicle during processing, or to go away and come back later to collect their oil,” OSA’s Kent Hallett said.

“We just wanted to let people know beforehand, so they knew what to expect and could make sure they were well stocked up for a bit of a wait.”

COVID-19 requirements put in place for harvest 2020 included: • bookings by appointment only • follow social distancing measures • no access to processing site buildings • on arrival, stay in vehicle and wait for forklift to come and unload fruit • either leave premises or wait in vehicle while fruit is processed • oil delivered to vehicle and loaded by processor *in some cases, one person able to enter shed to fill containers • oil in new containers only “While it was disappointing for some not to see their fruit being processed - and that precious first oil appear - everyone appreciated the efforts made to ensure that the harvest and processing could proceed despite the national shutdown regulations,” Hallett said.

“And it all went pretty smoothly - there just wasn’t as much catching up over coffee this year!”

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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 Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 21

Managing oil quality

Best practice EVOO handling and storage The 2020 harvest is now over for many growers, and well underway for others, meaning there are supplies of fresh, new season’s EVOO in storage across Australia.

High quality EVOO post-processing will only stay that way through continuing care and diligence with handling and storage, so here’s a timely reference/reminder checklist for best practice EVOO management from OliveCare® Administrator Peter McFarlane.

EVOO storage and blending checklist:

• Ensure compliance under the Australian Standard for Olive Oils and Olive Pomace Oils, AS 5264-2011.* • Undertake annual chemical and sensory testing of olive oil products, and understand how to read a test report.** • Understand olive oil storage defects and how to prevent these occurring.

• Document olive oil storage conditions/OliveCare® signatories to provide a declaration of olive oil storage conditions.

• Undertake olive oil oxidative stability and freshness testing to determine objective Best Before Dates (BBDs) for each oil and/or blend.

• Control heat, light and oxygen – the three ‘enemies’ of EVOO. • Ensure optimal storage temperature.

• Understand the characteristics of oil storage vessels, including use of floating lids.

• Investigate the use of an inert gas blanket.

• Undertake settling, purging, racking off and filtration processes at appropriate times post-processing.

• Undertake due diligence when purchasing bulk olive oil.

• Understand the principles of blending olive oil. * The Australian Standard for Olive Oils and Olive Pomace Oils (AS 5264-2011) can be downloaded from the AOA website: www. australianolives.com.au. **See the article How to read an olive oil test report on pages 43-46 of the June 2019 edition of Olivegrower & Processor.

Bulk oil storage:

Additional considerations are needed for bulk oil storage, whether in grower’s own facility or via external storage services: • Use clean stainless steel tanks thoroughly prepared using a fully rinse-able cleaning agent (e.g. sodium carbonate) which will remove any oil film. Rinse thoroughly to remove any cleaning solution trapped in valves and pipework.

• Transfer olive oil immediately after processing into a stainless steel tank with a serviceable floating lid or nitrogen blanket.

• The tank should be situated within an insulated store room which prevents large temperature fluctuations.

• ‘Purge’ regularly and ‘rack’ the oil off its sediment as soon as it has cleared.

Take a sample of the bulk olive oil for testing against the Australian Standard for Olive Oils and Olive Pomace Oils, AS 5264-2011. This involves the following three suites of tests, to be undertaken by a NATA or AOCS accredited laboratory: • Oil quality chemistry: free fatty acids (FFA), peroxide value (PV), ultra-violet absorption (UV) - (DK, K232 &K270); • Sensory Analysis for defects undertaken in accordance with the 22 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Heat, light, air and time are the main ‘enemies’ of fresh EVOO, accelerating breakdown and aging, so ensure you take care of yours with best practice handling and storage.

International Olive Council Method for the Organoleptic Assessment of Virgin Olive Oil, COI/T.20/Doc. No 15/Rev. 7, February 2015, by an accredited panel; • Oil Freshness: Pyropheophytin A (PPP’s), 1,2 Diacylglycerols (DAG’s), oil stability – Rancimat®. This data can be used to calculate the potential shelf life of EVOO and BBDs. Note: Both of Australia’s testing facilities, Modern Olives Laboratory and the NSW DPI Oil Testing Service, are NATA-accredited laboratories.

General notes:

• EVOO in storage will gradually lose quality, even if stored under the ideal conditions. The best quality fruit at processing and best storage conditions will slow down the natural degradation.

• EVOO with high oxidative stability can retain its good quality for two years after processing, provided that it is kept cool, stored away from light and oxygen, and is promptly decanted off any sediment upon settling.

• Oil stored in clear plastic and permeable containers exposed to sunlight will deteriorate very quickly. In practice, a bulk storage container should be of stainless steel.

• Mild oils with lower oxidative stability may retain EVOO quality for less than 12 months, even under ideal storage conditions.

The AOA’s Code of Practice Olivecare® program works to assist growers in implementing best practice production of EVOO and other olive products.

There’s more information on the AOA website www.australianolives.com. au, or contact Peter McFarlane at olivecare@australianolives.com.au.

THE LATEST UPDATES ON R&D WITHIN THE OLIVE INDUSTRY | JUNE 2020

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 longterm sustainability and profitability of the olive industry.

Each workshop included a guided tasting of both selected samples and attendees own products, providing an invaluable opportunity for expert and peer feedback.

Table Olive Workshops inspire local production Knowledge, answers and inspiration were the take-homes for more than 100 growers who participated in this year’s national program of Table Olive Workshops. Organised by the AOA and presented by South African table olive specialist Linda Costa of OlivesInFact, the full-day program covered all aspects of table olive production and marketing: questions and discussion were a hallmark of every event, with attendee feedback reflecting a wealth of answers gained.

production could become part of their business.

Fiona Martin – Oakbrook, NSW

“There was a lot of technical data but when it’s explained well, you realise it’s actually remarkably simple.”

Fiona Martin is a relative newcomer to olives, having purchased a small olive grove two and a half years ago.

She’d had a couple of tries at table olive production prior to attending the workshop, the first “a disaster” and last year’s “a success” and attended to help decide whether their family-use

“We are thinking about doing it commercially now, depending on what’s involved in getting the certification,” she said.

“It was a terrific day, and full of information, but the detail of it was in a sensible order so it never got overwhelming. Linda was fabulous: she kept the information coming but with enough breaks that we could get our head around it, and was very good at not making it sound too complex.

Top take-homes Fiona said she took away a number of ‘most important’ learnings, along with a heap of handy tips.

“Realising that HACCP is so important

– all the red tape that you need – and also the pH level. They were the big ones,” she said.

“There were also lots of little tips: lye helps to remove bruises; higher temperature increases chemical reaction; the olive to brine ratio - with green olives to start at one percentage and build to another; whether washing is a good idea and what it does to them; what temp to store them at; even about having containers with taps at the bottom.

“I learned that even though it’s a simple process, there’s a lot to it in the little things, and if you set yourselves up right at the beginning, all those things make it that bit easier.”

Group discussions While not something we can do at present, Fiona said the interactive nature of the workshop was another bonus.

2

It gave us that starting point and it was just really practical” – Belinda Bird, Four Brothers Grove “People brought their olives along and we tasted them and talked about each one,” she said.

“It was a chance for your tastebuds to pick up ones that weren’t quite right, and to work out why. For producers to get that feedback is invaluable, and I think it’s wonderful to be able bounce ideas around – we’re all in the same boat and have the same problems and interests etc. It doesn’t happen often enough for me.

“It was just a great day – and so informative. I’d be tempted to go to another one.”

Costa’s approachable presentation style included one-on-one interaction, ensuring understanding for attendees at all levels of knowledge and production.

the tasting very beneficial. I don’t actually like eating olives but I was able to differentiate between the various types and Linda was able to explain what was going on. I’m trying to be a bit more out there with appreciating them, and becoming more familiar with what happens to the fruit has helped with that.

“Overall, it gave us that first starting point and it was just really practical.

Linda made it sound like it could be an easy thing to do: the flavour is in the olives, you don’t have to do too much.

Belinda Bird – Four Brothers Grove Tasmanian attendee Belinda Bird has “a paddock and the dreams of a grove”, along with plans to make table olives in the interim using sourced local fruit.

She arrived with “very, very limited knowledge” and her husband Rob, who had “a fair bit”. Both declared the workshop a fantastic day.

“It didn’t matter if you went in with no knowledge like me, a little like Rob, or heaps, Linda was really interested in where we all came from and seemed excited to have us there and to share the information with us,” she said.

“Rob already had some fermenting in the cupboard and as a chef he had a bit of understanding of the processes, but neither of us had the depth of knowledge going in that we came out with.

“For Rob, understanding the lye was really good - he had a few little lightbulb moments there - and I found

I’ve had a problem and I didn’t know what it was, and after 20 years I learned” – Margie Carter, Parafield Olives

“And it was really comprehensive.

There were people who had been doing it professionally for a really long time and I swear they walked away with new stuff, while Rob and I got in the car just buzzing and he said ‘we could do this and this and this’.

“I pay hundreds of dollars to go to

nursing conferences and don’t come away with as much as we did on that day.”

Industry passion Belinda also said she gained a lot from the group discussions on the day.

“A lot of what came out of the session was that people aren’t doing it for the money; they’re doing it for the passion and what they can put on the plate – although a lot are looking to diversify for viability,” she said.

“It was good to get a sense of the different positions people are in, and that they’re looking at new and innovative ways of production. We could draw from all the experience in the room, hear the good, bad and ugly, and we still walked out passionate about doing it.”

Sandra Brajevic, Barfold Olives In contrast, Barfold Olives owner Sandra Brajevic has been producing table olives for 20 years but still took away a wealth of new knowledge from the workshop.

“We think ours are pretty good but we don’t have a lot of scientific background - and definitely wouldn’t call ourselves experts - so to have an interactive workshop where you can ask questions and present your own situation was really tempting. So I went and it was great,” she said.

“I was really interested to see someone else’s take on things and to compare Linda’s methods to what we currently do. Are we doing the right thing? It seems more or less we

3

Linda Costa: participation and potential Linda Costa was just as enthusiastic about the workshops, and shared her thoughts with Olivegrower about both the events and also the potential for Australian table olive production.

“The workshops were so well organised, in that they were offered in most of the main olive growing regions. No easy task in a big country such as this!

“The venues were well-chosen - central and easily accessible, wellequipped for meetings, and with good service. Though in some venues the coffee culture needed updating! Everyone enjoyed the informal, dialogue (rather than a monologue) format.

“I must admit that I was blown away by the number of interested participants. This was the result of great organisation and promotion by the AOA team. The level of interaction was particularly gratifying and this led to many discussions and new insights for all of us. I trust these will be on-going throughout the season.

“The good news is that consumers are asking for delicious table olives!

This was repeated by many growers, hence the enthusiasm to learn how to provide the consumers with tasty, microbiologically-safe product.

“The food safety aspect was probably the most cited reason for participation in the workshops. So the basics of food fermentation were covered, and the ensuing shelf stability of the fermented olive as opposed to a ‘cured’ or ‘de-bittered’ fruit. Once this concept is understood, table olive processing becomes a delight!

“With consumers asking for product, the potential of the Australian table olive sector should be great indeed. And they have not yet even begun to appreciate the nutritional benefit of table olives - very few understand that table olives fall into the ‘raw fermented food’ category.

“The challenge is to get this message across as soon as possible, and to follow up with the most delicious product variations - bearing in mind the globally accepted definition of a table olive, of course!”

Linda Costa www.olivesinfact.com are, but it would be good to improve a few things. So we got both a bit of reassurance and a few hints for improvement.

“We thought there would be nuggets to find that would really help us and there were a couple of those – although implementing them is still on the to-do list.

“There were good hints on the olive brine, especially the back-slopping method, where you use brine from previous batches to inoculate your new brine. You’ve got all your good bugs going into the new salt brine and you already have a good population – it makes sense but we haven’t been doing that.

“There were also good ideas about how to make your black olives

blacker, and that kind of thing.”

Gaining perspective Overall, Sandra believes industry workshops are “a gold mine” and “totally worth it”.

“If you’ve got a day spare you’ve nothing to lose and insight to gain,” she said.

“Even if your view is different to what’s presented, it’s good to get other people’s ideas and perspectives. You get some ideas, and hopefully see that you’re doing things well. That’s really valuable.”

Margie Carter, Parafield Olives An award-winning table olive producer for 22 years, the Canberra event was the third of Linda’s workshops Margie has attended

– and “the best ever, because she talked science – I loved all those words I can’t spell!”

“She really got into the chemistry of the olive, and how and why the pickled probiotic olive is so good for you. I got really inspired by that nutritional scientific chemistry and I’ve come home and made a new poster about the nutritional benefits of olives. I’ve used the words probiotic, anti-histamine, anti-inflammatory – I got those words and that extra understanding from Linda, and now I’m going to promote my olives even more. That will be my selling point: the incredible healthiness of naturally fermented olives as opposed to those made with caustic.

“I’ll also improve my production methods. I’ve had a problem and I didn’t know what it was, and after 20 years I learned I’ve got to get the more concentrated salt in the barrel and circulate that to the top, so the salt concentration in the whole drum is at equilibrium. That’s what I’ll be working out how to do for next batch.”

Questions and conversations Margie said the chance to share both issues and learning is what made the workshop so valuable.

“There’s hardly anybody in the world who knows as much about naturally fermented olives as Linda does, and so the opportunity to have her here is #1. She’s a lovely approachable person and it was really useful to be able to ask questions specific to your operation,” she said.

“And there were new people in the audience - new grove owners and people I hadn’t met before - and it was great to be able to have those ‘what’s-happening-in-your-grove?’ conversations with other growers.

“But most importantly, no matter who you were, you walked away with a much greater knowledge about table olives.”

More information For those who couldn’t attend, and participants wanting a refresher, workshop presentations and a video recording of the Adelaide event are available on the OliveBiz website - www.olivebiz.com.au - under the ‘Projects’ drop-down

4

With no cure available for Xylella fastidiosa infection, early detection and response are critical for successful containment and eradication.

Xylella controlled in Andalusia While there is still no cure for infection by the plant bacteria Xylella fastidiosa (Xf), fast action by authorities in Andalusia, Spain, has proven that it can be contained and eradicated via rapid detection and a co-ordinated response.

the organism had spread. This area was subdivided into 401 sections of 100x100m and regularly inspected over the following two years: a total of 741 samples of 28 different plant species were collected and tested, including olives, almonds and various susceptible wild species.

Background and action

During the two year surveillance period, Ministry staff also monitored the presence of vector insects known to carry Xf. Only two adult specimens of a possible transmitter were identified, suggesting minimal presence in the area, and laboratory analysis confirmed the absence of the bacteria in both.

In 2018 an isolated incidence of the bacterium was detected on an ornamental species in a producer nursery in El Ejido, Almería.

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Sustainable Development personnel immediately implemented the National Contingency Plan, undertaking the seizure and subsequent destruction of all sensitive plant material in the affected nursery. As part of the Plan’s conditions, the owner received compensation for the financial loss involved.

Sensitive plant material in two other nurseries that had supplied plant material to the El Ejido facility was also immediately identified and retained.

Government authorities inspected all plants and crops in the three nurseries, collecting and analyzing a total of 936 samples.

In addition, a one kilometre surveillance zone was established around the nursery where the bacteria had been detected to confirm whether

All-clear With analyses of all 1,677 samples of plant material and two vector insects over the two-year surveillance period testing negative to the presence of the bacteria, the Ministry has been able to verify the absence of the bacteria in the area. It therefore recently issued notification of the eradication of Xylella fastidiosa in Andalusia and declared the surveillance work completed.

Hope – and vigilance Australia’s National Xylella Preparedness Program Manager, Craig Elliott, said while this incidence reflects the importance of early

detection and response, it also provides hope for future incursions, especially as the approach reflects how we approach outbreaks in Australia.

“It’s great news, as it shows that Xylella can be contained with an eventual return to Area Freedom,” he said.

“The key point is that it seems to have been contained to the supply chain and they had the advantage of very low numbers of the vector.

Compare that to Apulia, where they possibly had the infection for a few years before it was identified and had an extremely high vector population.

It’s not surprising that the disease took off - also acknowledging that the social resistance factor had a major role there.

“For us, I think our response structures have been well-tested in recent years and that experience gives me more confidence in how we’d manage an outbreak but again, early detection will be critical. It’s imperative that growers are vigilant as to what’s happening in their groves and act immediately on any concerning signs, for their own sake and for the future of the entire Australian olive industry.”

Source: www.juntadeandalucia.es

5

Mapping crucial to rapid response AOA CEO Greg Seymour said the Andalusian experience shows the importance of knowing where vulnerable species are when an outbreak starts.

“We need every grower to take the time to enter their data, and then encourage their neighbours to do the same.”

“When an incursion is identified, if there’s a grove out by itself and there’s nowhere else for the vector leaf-hopper to fly to, we may have a month to get it under control. In our case it’s not so bad, as many of our growers are relatively isolated, but if it happened in McLaren Vale or the Hunter you’d have a bit of a panic,” he said.

“So working out what you’re going to do, and what the necessary timeframes for action are, is very dependent on geography and that’s where the industry mapping project comes into its own. A national olive map containing grove and industry production estimates is a crucial tool for biosecurity, as it allows us to immediately identify and monitor groves within the incursion range for the pest or disease in question – including abandoned groves – and to take informed and appropriate action.

“Phase 1 of the project has seen substantial progress on the

national map and database but for true efficacy, it’s important that every olive grove in the country is represented and the details kept updated.

“So far we’ve been spared the scourge of Xylella but we can’t be complacent, and I’d urge all growers who haven’t entered their grove data onto the map to do so as soon as possible. We have the tools at hand to be prepared for action, and it’s vital that we all play our part in doing so.”

National Xylella Preparedness Program Manager Craig Elliott agrees.

“Having this sort of information is critical to a quick response and ultimately the success of a response to an outbreak,” he said.

“Too often the responders are searching for a needle in the haystack, so knowing where groves are saves them a lot of time. This means surveillance is quicker, containment has a greater chance of success and then ultimately means that eradication may be more feasible.

“We need every grower to take the time to enter their data so that it gives a complete picture, and then

“Too often the responders are searching for a needle in the haystack, so knowing where groves are saves them a lot of time.”

encourage their neighbours to do the same.”

Enter your data and improve the map Grove data is added to the map via the Australian Tree Crop Rapid Response Web App. For more information on the app, map and the tree mapping program, contact Craig Shephard at craig.shephard@qld. gov.au.

See page 38 of this edition for an overview of the research currently underway to control and combat the spread of Xf.

6

Approval work seeks new fungicide options and resistance management Copper-based fungicides are frequently used as a preventative in Australian olive groves, however it’s important to remember that timing of application is critical to efficacy.

Equally important is resistance management: when using fungicides, it is important to rotate control options to prevent development of resistance by the fungus.

To that end, the Australian Olive Association is working closely with Hort Innovation to obtain permits or registration of new chemical control options, to enable ongoing efficacious treatment of fungal diseases.

Approved products The following fungicides are approved, or pending approval, for use on olives for the control of Anthracnose but are also likely to be effective against Cercospora and Peacock Spot: Copper formulations (Group M1 fungicides): low risk of fungicide resistance developing There are five types of copper compounds available in Australia: copper oxychloride (Oxydul-520, Coppox-500), copper hydroxide (Kocide WP-500, Kocide Blue350, Kocide Blue Liquid-360, Blue Shield-500), tribasic copper sulphate (green and blue coppers such as Cuprofix-200, Tri-base Blue-190), copper ammonium complexes and cuprous oxide (red copper). Products are formulated as wettable powders, wettable granules, liquid flowable suspensions or aqueous liquids.

Copper products may also contain small amounts of impurities (lead cadmium etc).

Those permitted for use on olives are:

PER11360 - Copper (Copper

present as Cupric Hydroxide, Cuprous Oxide or Tri-basic Copper Sulphate). Permit to 30 November 2021. Systemic Group M1 fungicide. Withholding period: 1 day.

Label Registration - Copper

oxychloride. Systemic Group M1 fungicide. Withholding period: 1 day.

Qols (Strobilurin) fungicides (Group 11): high risk of fungicide resistance developing Strobilurins are part of the larger group of QoI inhibitors. Extracted from the fungus Strobilurus tenacellus, strobilurins represent a major development in fungusbased fungicides. Strobilurins are mostly contact fungicides, with a long half time as they are absorbed into the cuticle and not transported any further. This group includes: azoxystrobin, kresoximmethyl, picoxystrobin, fluoxastrobin, oryzastrobin, dimoxystrobin, pyraclostrobin and trifloxystrobin.

Those currently permitted for use on olives are:

PER14908 - Pyraclostrobin

+ Metiram (Aero)/Olives/ Anthracnose. Permit to 31 July 2024. Systemic Group 11 and M3 dual action fungicide. Withholding period: 21 days.

Registered - Azoxystrobin

(Amistar)/Olives/Anthracnose.

Permit to 31 August 2019. Systemic Group 11 fungicide. Withholding period: 21 days.

Dithiocarbamate fungicides (Group M3): low risk of fungicide resistance developing This group includes Mancozeb, Methan, Metiram, Propineb, Thriram, Zineb and Ziram.

PER14908 - Pyraclostrobin

+ Metiram (Aero)/Olives/ Anthracnose. Permit to 31 July 2024. Systemic Group 11 and M3 dual action fungicide. Withholding period: 21 days.

Pending – Mancozeb. Group

M3 fungicide. Residue trials contracted December 2017, completed June 2019. Currently awaiting APVMA approval.

Anthracnose damage. Image: Vera Sergeeva.

DMI fungicides (Group 3): medium risk of fungicide resistance developing DMI = demethylation inhibitors, also called sterol biosynthesis inhibitors.

These include tebuconazole, difenconazole, propiconazole, epoxiconazole and tetraconazole.

Not currently registered for use on olives, however tebuconazole is being considered in combination with a Group 7 chemical for control of Anthracnose in olives as part of the Luna Range trial, as below.

SDHI fungicides (Group 7): high risk of fungicide resistance developing Fluopyram is a broad-spectrum fungicide of the pyridinyl-ethylbenzamides (‘pyramide’) group, with preventative, systemic and curative properties for the control of certain crop diseases. For crop protection purposes Luna Privilege Fungicide is best suited for use in a preventative treatment program.

Pending - Bayer Luna

Range: ‘Privilege’ Fluopyram (Group 7); ‘Experience’ Fluopyram+Tebuconazole (Group 7+3), for the control of anthracnose in olives. Trial work completed February 2020. Currently awaiting APVMA approval.

7 Resistance management strategies Hort Innovation R&D Manager Jodie Pedrana said a resistance management strategy involves the rotation of use of approved fungicides from difference chemical groups - hence the need to have approved alternative control options available.

“We need to be mindful regarding resistance with the Group 11 (strobilurin) fungicides, including coformulations, and ovoid overuse and reliance,” she said.

“We must ensure we have alternative fungicide groups to rotate within the system and strobilurins should not consist of more than a third of the total fungicide sprays per crop, as Azoxystrobin (Group 11) and Aero (Group 11+M3) is already used extensively for Anthracnose in olives.

“This is the reason why we are evaluating the group 7 and coformulation 7+3 fungicides, to provide an alternative fungicide group which hopefully will also provide some activity against grey mould and provide longevity of the existing Group 11s.”

Example fungicide resistance management rotation:

Peacock spot. Image: Vera Sergeeva.

DO NOT apply consecutive sprays

Rotate the above with products

DO NOT apply consecutive sprays

*Consecutive application includes from the end of one season to the start of the following season.

of solo products containing Group 7. Consecutive sprays include mixtures containing Group 7. of solo products containing Group 3. Consecutive sprays include mixtures containing Group 11.

DO NOT apply more than three

DO NOT apply consecutive sprays of solo products containing Group 11. Consecutive sprays include mixtures containing Group 3.

Group 3, Group 7 or Group 11 sprays per season (including mixtures of Group 11+3 and Groups 11+7).

from Groups M1 and M3.

Note: Group M1, Group M3, Group 3, Group 7 and Group 11 chemicals are also likely to have efficacy against Fusicladium (Peacock Spot), Pseudocerspora (Cercospora) and the Colletotrichum (Anthracnose) fungi.

Grove management and spraying efficacy AOA Agri-Chemical Permits Co-ordinator Peter McFarlane also reiterated the role of best practice grove management for spraying efficacy.

“Achieving an open tree canopy is important for both improved ventilation and good spray coverage, which is vital for the success of any spray program,” he said.

“These and other proactive grove management practices should form part of all growers’ integrated pest and disease management (IPDM) programs, aimed at increasing tree health and resistance to attack.

“Early detection and treatment - particularly before the issue becomes widespread - reduces the volume and frequency of chemical spraying programs, thus also reducing the risk of fungicide resistance.”

MORE INFORMATION Signatories can access information and grove management best practice checklists in the OliveCare® members’ area of the AOA website www.australianolives. com.au.

There’s also a wealth of information on offer in the videos and presentations from the 2018 Integrated Pest & Disease Management field day program, available on the OliveBiz website www.olivebiz.com.au from the IPDM project page.

8

Olive Wellness project gains three year extension It’s great news for all in the industry that the Olive Wellness Institute (OWI) has secured Hort Innovation funding for another three years.

The new funding will allow the OWI team to continue its work educating professionals about the health benefits of olive products through to March 2023.

General manager Sarah Gray said the project extension offers a great opportunity to expand on the Institute’s current work with healthcare professionals, and also to reach new audiences.

“We are delighted to have received this ongoing support from Hort Innovation,” she said.

“In particular, this new round of funding will enable us to expand our education into food service, culinary nutrition and home economics/ educators.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us how important good immunity and overall health is to all in our communities, so it is imperative that we educate people on how they can use EVOO in cooking and enjoy the health benefits it provides as part of a daily diet.

“We are really excited to commence this new phase of the project, and to get those messages out further and to a wider audience.”

New activities

Continuing activities will include new monthly podcast episodes covering a range of topics related to all things olives and health.

a virtual sensory kit; an EVOO documentary; training events for food service and chefs;

half and full day dedicated

symposium events around olive products and health.

These will complement the

continuation of current activities, including:

new blog posts on the website; new monthly podcast episodes; attendance at key industry, health

professional, culinary nutrition and home economics events; and

Research Recap

The OWI team has a lot planned already for the new project, including:

40+ new resources related to

culinary nutrition, chef education, food service education, oil comparisons and olive oil sensory aspects;

video content with a specific

focus on food service and culinary nutrition;

further development of the OWI website, including the addition of a dedicated food service and culinary nutrition section;

PROJECT NAME: Educating health professionals about Australian olive products (OL19001) PROJECT AIM: To increase the use of olive products in the daily lives of consumers by equipping Australian health care and food industry professionals with the knowledge they need to advise about their health benefits and uses PROJECT PARTNER: Boundary Bend Limited FUNDING: Hort Innovation Olive Fund PROJECT ENDS: March 2023

Developed by the OWI during the first stage of the project, the Event Kit for Growers provides industry members with fact-based resources to use at events and local farmers markets.

annual waves of market research.

Education and Training Project Manager Abby Dolphin said the OWI team is already focussed on the opportunities presented by the extended funding for the project.

“We are passionate about sharing health information on olive products, and with the secured ongoing funding from Horticulture Innovation we can continue to deliver olive growers and processors and healthcare professionals the high quality research, knowledge and resources they are used to accessing from the OWI.” Find out more and access all of the Olive Wellness Institute resources at www.olivewellnessinstitute.org.

The strategic levy investment project Educating Health Professionals about Australian Olive Products OL19001 is partially funded by Hort Innovation, using the Olive Fund research and development levy and contributions from the Australian Government.

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.

Managing oil quality

Q&A: Malaxing; Controlling polyphenol levels The March edition article “Malaxing: a ‘hot’ topic in processing” prompted the following technical question from New Zealand grower Peter Crelinsten. No doubt others are wondering the same thing, so we’re sharing the response from OliveCare® Administrator Peter McFarlane, along with further discussion on controlling polyphenol levels.

Q: My name is Peter Crelinsten, and I own/ run a very small olive grove (200 trees) in KeriKeri, NZ. When Peter McFarlane talks about ‘malaxing time’ and that it should not be less than 45 minutes, when does the timer start?

When the first paste enters the malaxer, when the malaxer is half full, or at some other time? Over here we tend to turn the malaxing blades on only once the malaxer is half-full and then start the 45 minutes. Does he turn the malaxing blades on once the very first paste enters the malaxer and start timing then, or as I do, as noted above?

A: International processing expert Pablo Canamasas has previously provided the answer to a similar question from Michael Coates at Maluka Estate.

The formula to calculate malaxation on batch modality is as follows: Malaxation time (batch) = (filling time/2) + malaxer full time + (emptying time/2) For instance: You start crushing at 8.30am and finish at 9.10am. You decide to leave the paste malaxing for another 15 minutes before starting and finally start pumping the paste at 9.25am, putting through all the paste in 40 minutes. The malaxation time will be:

Malaxation time (batch) = (40/2) + 15 + (40/2) = 55 minutes.

(Malaxation time = half the filling time (40/2) + time malaxer is full (15) + half the emptying time (50/2) = 20 + 15 + 20 = 55 minutes).

Note: This formula indicates that Pablo commences his malaxation at the start of filling through to the conclusion of emptying.

Q: Do you have access to any studies done on polyphenol levels with ‘traditionally pressed’ – ie hydraulic – oil vs centrifuged oil when all other parameters are controlled for? It has been suggested that traditionally pressed oil tends to produce higher PPH levels than centrifuged oil, consequent to centrifugal forces rupturing PPH chemical bonds, but all the information I have read is anecdotal in uncontrolled environments.

A: Again, Pablo has provided a response: Mellowing down robustness in EVOO at processing levels is generally quite ineffective.

We can certainly reduce PPH in EVOO by washing the fruit prior to crushing, malaxing a bit longer than needed and injecting 5-10% water to the decanter (if working in 2-phases), however if I had the option I would select 3-phase processing to reduce PPH,

and I would crush fruit with the pit included.

But I believe there is no better way to reduce PPH in EVOO than by properly irrigating the olive farm and avoiding tree stress. Water stressing trees gives way to higher PPH content in oil and this has been thoroughly studied and proven.

Regarding the extraction system, there is very little information on how the pressing method compares to the centrifugal system in terms of the PPH levels in the resulting oils.

If we consider that 2 and 3-phase decanters tend to work with a bit of water injection (which does not happen in presses) then there is a chance that there may be a bit more PPH in pressed oils than in centrifuged oils.

But that is only a guess. We have never paid further attention to this subject as presses are not suitable for medium to large scale operations in the world industry.

Got an issue in your grove? A tricky question about processing, packaging, or some other aspect of your olive business?

The Olivegrower & Processor team is here to help - and we’ve got all the right connections.

Let us know what you’re pondering over, battling with or downright bamboozled by, and we’ll speak with industry experts to try and find the answers. Then we’ll share them with you and your fellow Olivegrower readers in coming editions – because if it’s got you stumped, no doubt there’s a bunch of others out there wondering about the same thing!

Email your queries to Editor Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au and we’ll be in touch to get it sorted.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 31

New Zealand

ONZ Focus Groves continue to reap bountiful rewards This report outlines the status and practices of the groves taking part in the continuing Olives New Zealand Focus Grove Project. It includes observations by project consultant Stuart Tustin, information from grove owners and discussions with attendees, during the second round of Focus Grove Visits and Field Days held in March.

Northland: Olives on the Hill - Chris and Linda Smith

One of the original Focus Groves, Olives on the Hill has seen continuous improvement, achieving overall grove health and increased grove production of more than double the regional average.

Excellent flowering had translated to excellent fruit set and a crop load looking better than last year – 42kg/tree from hand harvested Ascolano.

Boron had been applied following soil testing and Protek applied at flowering as per project recommendations. A lack of rain had stretched Manzate spraying out to six weeks. Heavy pruning had been successful in restructuring trees, with mulching proving very effective and the limbs sold as firewood.

The Frantoio, Ascolano and Leccino blocks had separate leaf tests and no major deficiencies were identified, although magnesium verging on low needs monitoring. Boron was also low and, as it is needed for pollination and fruit set, a foliar spray prior to flowering was recommended.

Stuart noted that soil tests tell you about the reservoir while leaf tests tell you about the tree. Leaf testing in January allows major intervention if required and should then be repeated in July. As all blocks had similar results, in future only one needs to be tested.

He also noted that previous advice not to spread pruning mulch is not an issue with a disease control program. Organic matter is good for nitrogen and other soil nutrition, increases water retention and supports worms.

In response to a question on glyphosate spraying Stuart said that the organic matter will deplete over time and recommended a maximum of two applications, preferably only in late spring. Light weeds are not a bad thing for a variety of reasons: soil structure, water absorption, etc. A new mulcher with side weed eaters is being trialled with a view to minimise/eliminate the need for weed spraying.

Stuart said some trees were looking stressed because of lack of rain, however typically across the grove there were great bunches of fruit, with trees showing healthy new extension for next year’s crop and no disease. There may be lighter flowering next year but better fruit set may compensate. Minimal disease reiterates the need for proactive spraying.

It was noted there was die-back on some Leccino, which Chris plans to graft because of vulnerability to Anthracnose, perhaps to Picual.

Stuart explained that flatter, more umbrella-shaped trees were required for hand harvest, while these trees were taller, more upright vase-shaped for machine harvest. He recommended continuing the rotational program of large limb removal to restructure/rejuvenate trees while maintaining crop load.

Hawke’s Bay: Aquiferra - Bob Marshall and Shona Thompson

Aquiferra was one of the previous Focus Groves and is regarded as exemplary. Along with Kakariki in Nelson, it leads grove production nationally.

Heavy flowering had resulted in an excellent crop load, with good distribution throughout the trees. Some trees were estimated at 38kg. Irrigation for some months was reflected in the plump fruit, with size noted as good for the time of year due to exceptional growth conditions immediately after flowering.

32 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Who isn’t envious of the beautiful bunches being produced at Olives on the Hill, Northland.

“Our initial project target was an average of 15kg/tree and Aquiferra are now looking at trees with 38kg” Other groves reported a light fruit set, put down to a number of factors – dry at flowering; desiccated flowers indicates Anthracnose.

Stuart commented that healthy trees with a healthy canopy were more resistant to adverse weather conditions and the Protek spray programme protects against Anthracnose. Bob said dry weather had enabled summer spraying to be stretched past three weeks, and easily by one week.

Stuart pointed out the regrowth at the limb removal zone and the natural dominance of some shoots. Work with this when pruning: if it curves down due to branch weight, regrowth will occur on the top side of the branch. Let this occur and prune appropriately next year.

He noted the leaf test showed nitrogen and boron both below the medium category, but not significantly. The advice was to observe

New Zealand

Following the FGP pruning program and a limited spraying regime, the Neudorf grove looking fabulous.

for the present: nitrogen would normally be applied after harvest but winter rain would flush it away, so spring application would be better as nitrogen is good for fruit set; a boron foliar application prior to flowering is best. Growers should look at leaf test and tree health in tandem.

Stuart credits Shona with revolutionising the way we now prune.

The ‘Shona approach’ has been proven to accelerate the restructuring of trees while maintaining production, and has now been adopted by those following FGP recommendations with consistent and outstanding results.

“Soil tests tell you about the reservoir while leaf tests tells you about the tree” Nelson: Kakariki Olives, Redwood Valley - Ray and Brenda Gregory

Also one of the original Focus Groves, Kakariki is an exemplary grove, showing outstanding improvement in grove health and increased production. It produces almost double the average tonnage for the region and currently leads average grove production nationally.

Since the last field day fertilizer had been applied following the soil test: the potassium and magnesium deficiency had been addressed by applying 'olive grove mix' at 300kg/ha. Stuart reiterated the need for soil tests and only applying what is required.

Protek had been applied at flowering as per recommendations, with Manzate included in the first and third sprays. Boron was applied as a foliar spray. Regular Manzate sprays have continued after an eight week break over harvest but with a six week rainless gap. The major restructure of the grove had finished and maintenance was continuing. Stuart said the aim is to get trees under 6m in height, noting fruit clusters high in trees which would likely be outside spray reach. Ray said he noted upward spray drift during spraying.

A typically laden tree at Aquiferra, one of the original Focus Groves now producing consistently bountiful crops on healthy restructured trees.

Kakariki had a big flowering and good fruit set, despite big winds, while other growers also had a big flowering but this had not translated into fruit set. Stuart commented that healthy trees aid in fruit set - canopy health and managed disease plus Anthracnose control – as unhealthy canopy sees high leaf loss, meaning lack of support for fruit set.

The excellent crop load across the grove was evident in bunches and strings of large fruit. To a question on heavy crop affecting yield, Stuart pointed to the need to leave fruit to ripen longer. Kakariki had a heavy crop with very good yield last year, again pointing to tree health for increased production. The grove is again in very good health this year, with very good crop throughout.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 33

New Zealand

The Terrace Edge field day included a hands-on pruning session, with attendee groups allocated a tree each to discuss and determine which branches needed to be pruned, and why.

Leaf tests showed nitrogen was a little low, which will be monitored; manganese and zinc were apparent because of Manzate spraying (the main components); iron was low and a foliar spray could help this; potassium was a little low and will be addressed by the ‘olive mix’ fertilizer. Stuart emphasised the importance of selecting current season’s growth for leaf testing.

He discussed mulching prunings back around trees; that dead roots rot and leave channels for good soil structure and water retention; leaving restructured trees for a year to determine the best branches; taking the top off some trees after harvest; and demonstrated making cuts at the 'collar' so the tree heals itself. If using wound dressing this must be applied immediately.

This season Kakariki will trial leaving the machine harvester net around the tree and using branch shakers to remove the balance of fruit, estimated at more than 2kg/tree.

Neudorf Olives, Upper Moutere - Susan Pine

The Pines are taking an alternative approach, following the Focus Grove pruning recommendations but limiting the Manzate spray programme to monthly applications.

The trees had responded well to the heavy prune undertaken and there was a good crop. The leaf test results were very good and little intervention was required: iron was a little low but could be left; and Neudorf was the only grove so far with appropriate boron levels.

Susan said the trees had been looking unhealthy and two spray cycles had been done since the last visit. This takes 9-10 hours for the now 1350 trees, which were already showing minimal sign of disease due to spraying and dry weather. Pruning had taken a month of major chainsaw work, with two woofers spending another month on skirts and lifting lower branch height - hand harvesting requires trees compact and well clear of the ground, for ease of using mats

34 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

and shaker access. The five-person harvesting team uses two branch shakers plus a vibrating harvester, which is especially good for Leccino and finishing off if time permits. Susan operates the press.

Last year they lost fruit because of either drought or Anthracnose, however higher yield compensated. Neudorf usually produce intense oils and harvest mid-late June.

Susan also noted they had cut back and transplanted 40 trees and all recovered.

“Unhealthy canopy sees high leaf loss, meaning lack of support for fruit set” Canterbury: Terrace Edge, Waipara - Bruce and Jill Chapman

Another off the original Focus Groves, Terrace Edge faces challenges in following the recommendations yet has managed to produce double the average harvest for the Canterbury region.

As part of the project their grove is in two sections: one following the previous project recommendations, in particular the Manzate spraying regime; the other following organic principles. Following soil analysis a fertilizer mix was applied to address deficiencies. Manzate spraying had continued but they missed the timing for Protek; major pruning had been done since harvest and mulched back in; ash also applied around trees.

Discussion around pruning for harvest method noted this is not as important in North Canterbury trees as other regions. The common issue across Canterbury (and other regions) has been flowering not translated to fruit set. Causes include wind and tree health. There can also be fruit drop as a response to drought.

The crop load was generally good, looking like more than 20kg/

New Zealand

the tank to reduce copper foaming in high agitation sprayers (1 cup olive oil/700L tank). This will also act as a surfactant, allowing the copper to stick to and be absorbed into the leaf.

Attendees then split into groups in the grove, each allocated a tree to discuss which branches needed to be pruned and why. Bruce carried out the cuts as per the decisions, which included: branches hanging outside of the harvest umbrella; opening up the tree for light and spray penetration; removing large limbs to allow new growth that has been suppressed. Discussion continued around trees with trunks now too big for the harvester: coppicing at ground level and establish a new tree from regrowth was suggested.

“If trees have been allowed to become too big and dense, there will be a period of consolidation before we return to the previous large crop loads ... but now on a better structured tree for on-going production.”

Wairarapa

The COVID-19 situation necessitated the need to cancel the Wairarapa visits. The following information was provided by the grove owners.

Leafyridge, Masterton - Craig and Ruth Leaf-Wright FGP consultant Stuart Tustin talks attendees through pruning theory and practice at each of the field days.

tree, although some trees appeared to have very little. Irrigation had occurred since December.

Stuart noted that leaf tests results across the Focus Groves have been similar, despite different terroirs and grove management. We are typically looking for medium results across the measures, however most regions are experiencing drought which impedes mineral uptake.

Terrace Edge was slightly low in nitrogen, phosphate and magnesium; potassium was high, which is good; boron was needed, with foliar spraying of a split application at the beginning and during flowering recommended as ground dressing takes several years to be effective. This could be added to Protek sprays. Manganese and zinc were again high due to Manzate spraying. Stuart noted that water was a more important issue at this time and that deficiencies can be addressed with the annual program after harvest. The ‘olive mix’ dressing should be modified based on specific needs.

Discussion confirmed that a lack of rain means you can stretch out the spray regime and most Focus Groves have skipped several sprays but Stuart cautioned about the need to monitor dew/condensation (including fog), as that is enough moisture to exacerbate disease.

A scale problem was addressed with Applaud in late December, however this was not effective. Horticentre recommended Monarch, which is applied in January and is effective but expensive.

Overall, the trees at Terrace Edge were looking the healthiest they have in many years, with much reduced disease, and Stuart said this would result in much less leaf in the harvest.

Bruce is looking at trialling an organic approach but Kocide copper is not accepted by BioGro so he is looking at alternatives. There is no problem with the recommended sulphur product and it was noted that the copper dose used in our trial is much lower than label recommendations, based on efficacy in organic apple orchards.

Further discussion produced a recommendation to add olive oil to

Leafyridge is one of the original Focus Groves and has followed an aggressive pruning regime to get the trees back into shape and size.

The benefits are now becoming apparent.

Following soil tests, 30T of lime was spread across the grove (12ha) in May 2019 to raise the pH. The next test in August showed the pH as 6.1, which is considered acceptable. In September 2T of 50% potash super was applied and had a marked effect on the trees: leaves more prolific, and generally looking healthier and greener.

The 21-day cycle of spraying Manzate has continued, extending the interval twice during the drought to 30 days (Feb and March).

Protek was applied three times at flowering, however in the future the Leaf-Wrights are considering applying the first Protek spray a few days before flowers are expected to start opening, rather than after.

As the trees now have large canopies, weeds are reduced, as is spraying - now every four months and often only in certain areas.

Flowering was very good and translated into a good fruit set.

The Frantoio trees that were heavily pruned in 2018/2019 have particularly good crops, so do the Manzanillo, Leccino and Picual although not quite as spectacular. The Leccino had some desiccation and dropping of fruit early in the season, which could be the tree adjusting its crop load and shedding excess fruit.

Initial indications are that this year’s crop will be at least 50% higher than last year (taking into account the impact of heavy pruning 2,000 trees).

Rain stopped in early January with minimal precipitation until late March. Irrigation is restricted but supplies 20-40L/day (depending on restrictions), and the trees remained healthy and retained most of their fruit during this period. Where drippers malfunctioned, the tree clearly looked stressed with curling leaves but did not appear to shed fruit, rather the fruit was smaller.

Leaf testing showed a few deficiencies but none that require action until spring.

“The benefits of tree restructuring cannot be over emphasised but do not happen overnight. The new growth that we see from where the Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 35

New Zealand

Focus Grove Project aims

The second Sustaining Farming Fund Focus Grove Project, Meeting the Increasing Demand for New Zealand Extra Virgin Olive Oil, follows on from the initial Focus Grove Project, Increasing the Market Share for New Zealand Olive Oil, which ran from 2016-2019.

Originally aiming to boost cropping levels to 15kg/tree, the project saw participating groves dramatically increase both tree health and production levels, some achieving as much as 35kg/tree.

The continuing project aims for further improvements via a regime of specified management practices, to achieve the target of an additional 5kg of fruit production - from 25kg/ tree to 30kg/tree annually. This will enable the industry to meet the increasing demand for NZ EVOO, which already exceeds current supply capability at demand.

A secondary target is an alternate, more organic approach to the current requirement of an intensive spraying program for pest and disease management.

The new project uses five focus groves across the main growing regions, which have already successfully implemented the recommendations of the previous FGP and will now implement and trial new recommended approaches.

It also includes a number of groves trialling a more organic approach to improving tree health and increasing crop loads.

The new project runs over three years from October 2019. trees have been opened up is spectacular. If trees such as ours have been allowed to become too big and dense, we have to understand that there will be a period of consolidation before we return to the previous large crop loads ... but now on a better structured tree for on-going production.”

Bella Olea, near Greytown - Chris and Hilary Penman

The Penmans are following an organic approach and are well on their way to full certification, which is expected next year.

More big pruning has been under way at Bella Olea, with new growth obvious from the pruning late last year. A reduced crop will result from the major cuts to reduce tree height and improve re-growth. The drought meant not much rain for two months until the end of March. Subsequently no fertiliser had been applied yet but that first real rainfall saw planning commence, assuming more rain to come. Spraying of an organic fungicide mix was also about to commence.

Flowering appeared normal but fruit set was medium to low in Leccino and Frantoio, and zero in Picual and Picholene. They have taken over management of another organic grove Greytown which has reasonably good fruit set and should help keep oil levels up.

Leaf testing show continued low levels of boron and magnesium, so continued foliar applications of these are planned.

Summary

All of the original Focus Groves that have been following the recommended programme for proactive disease management and canopy management have reached an exemplary stage. Neudorf is also well on their way.

Vastly improved tree health is apparent across all of the groves, with very little or no disease and plenty of lush leaf. The tree structure has dramatically improved, enabling light and spray penetration, and ease of effective harvest. The 2020 crop-load is looking impressive at these groves and the harvest tonnage should prove unquestionably the merit of following the project recommendations. Conversely, other

36 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Prolific flowering at Leafyridge is testament to the benefits of following the FGP programme recommendations.

groves not following the project recommendations, have reported a poor fruit set and some will have a poor harvest (again).

For other groves following the recommendations, the results are apparent in their harvest tonnage as well as their observations on overall grove health.

It is therefore difficult to understand why other groves choose to do nothing, and accept poor production and high costs. The ability to address these issues, and the unfilled demand for NZ EVOO in many regions, is in their hands.

This is an edited version of the Milestone MS02 report of the Sustainable Farming Fund Project 19025 - Meeting the increasing demand for New Zealand Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Full details of the project can be found on the Olives New Zealand website: www.olivesnz.org.nz.

Table Olives

‘Secrets’ of table olive production shared South African expert Linda Costa’s open and inclusive presentation style was flagged by many participants as a highlight of the AOA National Table Olive Workshop series held earlier this year. Costa’s generosity in sharing information has since continued, with ongoing experiential advice provided to attendees as she worked through her own harvest and table olive processing. She’s allowed us to share it with growers unable to attend the events, noting that this information refers to, and builds on, technical information discussed during the workshops.

Linda Costa, OlivesInFact Presenter - AOA National Table Olive Workshop Series While processing my first batches, I thought I would share what I am doing, hoping that it will encourage you to experiment too. With copious notes, of course.

The part-drum conundrum

The challenge is usually when you do not have sufficient fruit to fill a drum, or the next drum, not so? So better than filling a drum (or any container) and having a half drum of fruit remaining, I would distribute the fruit equally to have two drums 75% full.

For all the reasons given during the workshops, I would not try to ferment in a container that is less than 75% full of olives. As we all understand by now, the best fermentation will be obtained with the most amount of olives in the container, so this advice is for those last bits and pieces.

We harvested our first Nocellara crop and this amounted to 150kgs. Hmph! I have 220L drums which hold about 120kgs and tanks which take 1 tonne.

So I filled my one drum, which is fitted with a valve at the bottom, with fruit and decided to do the REAL Castelvetrano process. This process includes a bit of lye together with the salt - just enough to do its job, but not enough to have excess lye around that needs to be rinsed out. We have to be very careful that the pH does not stay high for longer than seven days maximum.

When the drum was filled with olives and drained, a 5% salt solution was added, together with 0.75% lye (sodium hydroxide), handled very carefully. And every step was recorded!

Monitoring pH

In seven days’ time I will circulate the brine - keeping it as air-free as possible - and add another 5% salt, to bring it up to 10%. I will check the pH, and adjust down to pH 5. And I will check the pH and salt concentration frequently until it stabilises at pH 5 or below (and 10% salt) and then the fermentation should start bringing it down. If the pH does not come down, I will adjust it again.

Linda Costa on keeping healthy during COVID-19:

“In these times, our product is such an important component in the global drive to boost immunity through nutrition.

“And don’t forget about olive leaf tea - loaded with oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol, the amazing antioxidants!

Make this and drink some every day - a quarter glass diluted with sparkling water is so, so delicious. You can add it to any drink or smoothie.”

Spread the word to consumers!

I will keep you posted on the progress.

To the remaining 50kg I added some green Manzanilla and some green Nandi (a new cross that my cousin propagated) to fill the drum.

This drum does not have a valve at the bottom so I will not be able to circulate too easily, so this will have to undergo a natural green fermentation - a 10% brine was added. The pH of the rain water was 5.5, so I acidified the 100L of brine by adding 500ml of acetic acid, which lowered the pH to just above 4. Acidification of the brine should maintain the colour, while not inhibiting the fermentation, we trust.

Will let you know the progress of this too.

Kalamata

In the meantime, 2 tonnes of Kalamata were brined in Inn-OVats and are bubbling away merrily (gas escaping and some Gram negatives trying to get a foothold!). Tomorrow they will be circulated, and salt added to bring the brine back up to 10%, and this will be repeated every week until the salt stabilises at 10%. I just love hearing the tanks bubbling away, knowing that the olives are safe!

Kind regards and happy processing!

Linda More information: www.olivesinfact.com

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 37

Pests & disease

The fight to save Europe’s olive trees from disease We’ve heard a lot about Xylella fastidiosa and the devastation it’s causing in European olive groves; also about our own need for biosecurity measures to (hopefully) keep it at bay. Here’s some positive news about the innovative and varied research currently underway to combat the disease.

By Fintan Burke

A plant disease spread by sap-sucking insects has been devastating olive and fruit orchards across southern Europe, but scientists are inching closer to halting its spread with the help of insect repelling clays, vegetative barriers and genetic analysis.

In the late summer harvest of 2013, olive farmers in the Puglia region of southern Italy noticed that the leaves on several of their trees were turning brown and their shoots withering. The problem spread from one orchard to another, as more olive farmers found their trees were drying out and beginning to die.

Genetic testing confirmed them to be infected with Xylella fastidiosa, a bacteria originally found in America. Soon outbreaks appeared throughout the Mediterranean, even briefly as far north as Germany in 2016.

The bacteria is mainly spread by sap-sucking insects known as spittlebugs and sharpshooters. As the insects feed, the bacteria is able to infect the vessels that transport water and nutrients around the plant, known as the xylem. As the bacteria destroy the xylem, it slowly chokes the plant.

“We are dealing with a very severe situation in southern Italy,” said Dr Maria Saponari, based at the Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection in Bari, Italy. Europe’s researchers were caught off-guard by the epidemic, she explained.

“When the bacterium was discovered here, there wasn’t any research centre in Europe working specifically on this pathogen. We were starting from zero.”

The disease can infect a wide range of plants, including shrubs like the myrtle-leaf milkwort and rosemary, oak trees, and important crops like lavender. Food crops including cherry trees, plum trees and olive trees are among the species considered to be at high risk.

In particular, the outbreak has amplified problems in Italy’s strained olive oil sector. In 2018, the country reported a 57% drop in its olive harvest compared to 2017 – a 25-year low. Researchers blamed a frosty spring followed by a summer drought, which weakened the olive trees and left them even more susceptible to infection.

The intense summer weather in southern Italy may also have made it easier for the disease to spread among olive trees as insects carrying the bacteria sought out food in the dry conditions.

“Here in summer, olives are the only green plants that we see,” said Dr Saponari.

“Olive canopies, for them, (are) like a refuge to survive.”

While the disease has been found in a number of EU countries, it appears “the strains that have been imported in Corsica or in Spain are much less aggressive than the strain spreading in Puglia”, added Dr Saponari.

In response, Dr Saponari is leading one of several Europe-wide projects seeking ways to curb this new threat to Europe’s olive crops, and monitor its spread. Her XF-actors project is examining olive trees’ genetics to see if some of the plants have natural resistance to Xyella fastidiosa that can then be used to breed crops that are more resilient against the disease.

Border plants

Researchers on the project are also conducting field experiments to look at natural strategies to combat the disease, such as using kaolin

38 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

The discovery of Xyella fastidiosa in European olive trees in 2013 caught European researchers off-guard. Image credit - Sjor/ Wikimedia commons, licenced under CC BY-SA 4.0

clay as an insect repellent. Others are experimenting with ‘border plants’ that can be grown around olive groves and other important crops to draw the bacteria-carrying insects away from the crops, and ‘sentinel plants’ such as the myrtle-leaf milkwort which show symptoms of bacterial infection sooner, allowing action to be taken quickly to contain an infection.

It is also hoped it may be possible to contain the disease by chopping down infected plants, using more insecticide, or planting crops that are less susceptible to the bacterial strain.

The project team’s priority lies in assisting the early detection and containment of the disease. Field inspections and new imaging technology developed by the XF-actors project can already predict how the bacteria may spread, and how to contain it. For example, a combination of thermal images, fieldwork, and spectroscopy can now detect infection in plants and trees before any symptoms appear.

All this information can then be put together to give the authorities a better idea of in which areas the disease is more likely to spread, and so where to send their inspectors next.

To date, monitoring and predicting outbreaks has proven difficult.

Even tracking the disease-carrying insect vectors involves hours of sweeping trees and shrubs with entomological nets, and scientists still have to unravel exactly how the bacteria passes from the insects to the plants. “(Nets are) the best way to catch them,” said Professor Alberto Fereres, an entomologist based at Spain’s Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Madrid.

“They are not very much attracted to sticky-colour traps. They communicate by sound – they don’t use colours as visual cues to find their host plants.”

Professor Fereres works on the XF-actors project while also leading another project aimed at tackling pest-spread pathogens in Europe, called POnTE. Professor Fereres and his team are hoping to understand how insects transmit bacterial diseases like Xyella fastidiosa.

Their research is providing some early clues for strategies to stem

Pests & disease

Spittlebugs are among the insects that carry the Xyella fastidiosa bacteria and infect plants as they feed. Image credit - Pavel Kirillov/Wikimedia commons, licenced under CC BY-SA 2.0

the transmission of the disease. One involves introducing other non-harmful bacteria into the insects that make it harder for Xyella fastidiosa to spread.

“These can do two things – they can try to suppress the replication of the (Xyella) bacteria, (and) they can also compete with the bacteria in the vector for binding sites,” explained Professor Fereres. “(This) binding site is the precise place where the virus or bacteria binds inside the insects mouthparts,” said Prof. Fereres.

His team is also experimenting with antimicrobial peptides – short bits of protein – and chemicals that can interfere with the bacteria’s ability to remain inside insects’ bodies.

The project is trying to prove which insects can pick up the bacteria from a plant and which are able to successfully transfer it to other plants as they feed.

The team are conducting laboratory experiments that place infected insects on plants in controlled environments so they can pinpoint what exactly needs to happen for insects to transmit the bacteria to other plants – do they need to bite into the xylem specifically or just into other parts of the plant, for example.

The bacteria could also affect each plant species differently.

“We don’t know the genetic determinants which lead to the infection of some plant species and not other ones … that are genetically close,” says Dr Anne Sicard of the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRAE) in Montpellier, France.

Dr Sicard leads the XYL-EID project, a joint effort between INRAE, the University of California Berkeley, US, and Italy’s National Research Council, which is analysing the bacteria’s DNA to find out why such differences occur.

“We will have to learn how to live with Xyella, but we will have to also develop ways to contain the disease as much as possible and to avoid situations as in the south of Italy.”

The research in this article was funded by the EU. The article was originally published in Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine - www.horizon-magazine.eu/article/fight-save-europe-s-olive-treesdisease.

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Outbreak origins

The project is searching for genes involved in helping the bacteria adapt to new environments, and in particular what happened in the outbreak in Puglia. They have analysed 74 bacteria samples collected from infected olive trees from across the affected area by sequencing each of their genomes.

This work is already offering some promising insights into the origin of the outbreak. All samples are genetically very similar to one another, confirming that the outbreak in Puglia is the result of the introduction and subsequent establishment of a single strain of Xyella fastidiosa. They also had a genetic similarity to a strain of the bacteria found in coffee plants in Costa Rica.

But while this research may ultimately provide new ways of fighting the disease, it is unlikely to eradicate it, added Professor Fereres.

www.sumitomo-chem.com.au * Water based solution. Admiral® is a registered trademark of Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 39

Olive business

COVID-19 and marketing Marketing is for many the tough part of running an olive business but most have found a sales format which suits their production scale and life/operational style. But what happens when that market shuts down overnight, without warning?

We spoke with growers across Australia and New Zealand about the impact on sales of the COVID-19 restrictions, and the innovative ways they have reacted to keep their businesses viable.

Mount Zero Olives: pivot

When the COVID-19 shutdown forced restaurants to close, Victorian producer Mount Zero Olives lost 65% of its business overnight. For General Manager Richard Seymour, that meant a fast pivot of the company’s long-term business model.

“We don’t supply the major retailers but have chosen to look after restaurants. That’s where we’ve gotten our volume from and it’s been a good choice for the last 15 years,” he said.

“The predicament it left us in, though, is that we now have oil sitting in tanks and olives sitting in barrels that we need to move.

We also work with other supplier farms, so it’s The new Mount Zero Direct Portal saw the business offer an extended range of produce home their products too. delivered to Melbourne metro customers, keeping their delivery drivers employed and supporting “The olives don’t have quite the ticking partner producers who also currently have a surplus. clock that the oil does but with harvest “It’s a way to differentiate from our coming in we want to empty some tanks, there who are more than happy to go direct and we’ve got about 16,000L of oil which to the producer. They’re also happy to buy in internet offering: we can add things like milk, was previously earmarked for restaurants. the larger format: by units we’re still selling bread and cheese, picked up from the local It’s still great for another six months but we’re more 500ml bottles but by volume it’s 2L bakery or producer who, like us, currently has a surplus. We’re partnering with other a business which has always offered fresh oil casks.

“We do six different varieties in casks and producers in the same boat and at the same in June, and we’re looking to do the same this season. So we’re having to work like mad to previously they were only available to our time giving our customers a really great restaurant and cafe customers, but now offering.” clear our current holding.” they’re on the website we’re finding that Sharp pricing Seymour said the first thing they did was reach out to consumers via their email and “Since the shutdown we’ve been trying to pivot to be more social media databases – and discount.

“We offered them some pretty sharp pricing as an incentive, and we were honest consumer facing than restaurant facing” in saying ‘we’re asking for your help’. The – Richard Seymour, Mount Zero Olives. response has been really great,” he said.

“Then we’ve reached out to manufacturers and others for whom previously we’d maybe offering is being taken up by consumers. Alto Olives, NSW: adaptation been outside of a viable price point, offering Particularly as we’ve reduced the price The Alto business model pre-COVID-19 them some equally sharp prices on the oil we substantially since the restaurant market was entirely distributor based, with 90% disappeared.” need to move. of sales to the food service and hospitality Delivery portal “We’re trying to do two things: one, stay sectors and the other 10% to retail. It made With online sales proving successful, sense for several reasons: their remote afloat and two, keep our supplier farms as close as we can. If we have to drop our they’ve recently added the Mount Zero location made mail order runs costmargins for two to six months to do it, then Direct Portal to their marketing mix. Utilising prohibitive; and as the retail landscape a separate ordering platform, the portal changed from small to large retailers, they that’s what we’ll do.” offers an extended range of produce home were able to maintain their stance of not Online growth As a result, Seymour said, their online delivered to customers in the Melbourne selling to the duopoly. metro area. demand has changed remarkably.

It meant, however, that the COVID-19 “We have delivery drivers and sales reps shutdown seriously affected their sales “It’s come from a pretty low base but has probably increased about five-fold. We’re who I need to keep employed, and this is market – and that they had to re-think their supplying families right across Australia, and our way of keeping them on the road and in decision not to sell online. we’re now targeting that a lot more with our business,” Seymour said.

“For years we had people contacting us “We’ll offer home delivery over whatever to buy directly but we didn’t go down that promotion.

“The demand was always there, we time it takes for the restaurants to come back path, so we weren’t very well set up to deal just hadn’t really chased it, and now we’re online - and after that, who knows: we may with this pandemic. But we recognised that realising there are a lot of consumers out hang on to it, we may put the brakes on. with everyone staying at home we needed

40 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

Olive business

Telegraph Hill’s Geoff Crawford may be social distancing in his grove but has discovered the benefits of collaborative marketing during the shutdown.

to make our products available directly to consumers,” Alto’s Westerly Isbaih said.

“It’s not being done in a really schmick way with a plug in to our website and photographs, it’s a band-aid solution for now, but they can go on the website, see a pdf pricelist and we’ve got someone in Sydney managing the delivery.

“We only kicked it off two weeks ago and we’re already getting orders, although I don’t how much business we’ll get through it.

“But we’re doing what we can to keep the Alto brand out there. With other producers customers already knew they could access products online, so when we opened up direct sales I put that up on our social media channels to get the word out. It’s a new thing for us and so would naturally be a much slower start but it’s important; we have to do it.”

Isbaih said that innovative concepts by other businesses have also opened up new sales opportunities.

“We have the ability to adapt to the change, so we’ll work it out” - Westerly Isbaih, Alto Olives “There are a few new channels which have opened up where people are accessing our products from our distributors. For example, this new wave of hampers – restaurants are doing them; people are connecting via Zoom and being provided with, say, cocktail-

making hampers. And a ‘quarantini’ needs olives,” she said.

“Then because their customers predominantly stopped operating, some of our bigger distributors looked at remodelling their businesses. For example, one opened their warehouse to the general public to purchase the stuff which had been going into restaurants - large format, 10L – and they’ve also made those available to the public online.

“So it’s not that everything has stopped because the restaurant trade shut down, the distributors are responding by shifting to a more retail range of products.

“It means we’re servicing small orders, both individual or for hampers, and that will keep small parcels of our product moving during the shutdown.”

Which will give them time to keep adapting, Isbaih said.

“At the moment we’re managing: at the farm we’re down to skeleton staff, and the good thing about our operation is that we’re a small family business,” she said.

“But what is it going to look like after this?

We can’t just pull the new online way of selling. Luckily we have the ability to adapt to the change, so we’ll work it out.

“Alto will survive because at the heart of our business is that we supply nutritious and delicious food, and that’s the one thing people need regardless of what’s happening.”

Telegraph Hill: collaboration

Telegraph Hill has a varied sales model, including retailing through supermarkets and

independents, direct sales to restaurants and gift box businesses, farmers markets stalls and their own factory shop and website.

They sell table olives, EVOO, dressings, drizzles and condiments.

Despite that spread, owner Geoff Crawford said the initial impact of the COVID-19 lock-down was dire.

“We created a Cure Your Own Table Olive kit, which gave people in lockdown a project” - Geoff Crawford, Telegraph Hill “The first two weeks of lock down were close to zero sales through all channels, which was very stressful. People focussed on buying toilet paper and baked beans rather than gourmet food,” he said.

“Since then sales have increased through supermarkets and the independent retailers who were able to remain open, and website sales increased 400% for the month of April.

Despite the website increase, however, total sales are down on the previous year.”

But that impressive increase in online sales didn’t just happen by itself. It was part of several proactive initiatives aimed to ensure viability through the distancing period.

“We’ve pushed online sales through FaceBook and our email newsletter. We’ve sent more newsletters to our database

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Adaptation in a time of economic crisis In the May OliveCare® newsletter, Administrator Peter McFarlane referenced a recent Euromonitor International webinar which highlighted the likely short, mid and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the food and nutrition industries.

• short term – stockpiling; supply chain disruption • medium/long-term in line of recession – increase in value-for-money offerings; increase in home cooking; decrease in demand for foodservice, hotels etc.

It also identified consumer habits which may remain post-crisis, including: increase in e-commerce; importance of food safety and localism; greater purchase of health and wellness foods.

McFarlane noted that, “while the viral pandemic is having a shocking impact on people, businesses and the broader economy, it is also presenting marketing opportunities for those businesses that can adapt quickly to the new economic reality” and listed some of the implications for the Australian olive industry beyond the initial consumer reaction of hoarding shelf-stable food products – including olive oil: • there is a clear trend to e-commerce and local shopping, cementing the value and timing of the recent AOA webinars on digital marketing; • product provenance is increasingly important, with consumers wanting to know where a product was made, what it’s made from and who has handled it. Olive producers have an opportunity to tell their wonderful family and product provenance stories, which will assist in building trust and brand loyalty; • with the forthcoming recession there is a consumer swing to value for money purchases, including larger package sizes. This also means consumers will need to be reminded about how to care for olive oil in the pantry; • the immune boosting and other wellness* properties of bioactive compounds in both olive oil (polyphenols) and table olives (probiotics) provide a great marketing opportunity for olive products as consumers look to take (better) care of themselves during the pandemic; • with social isolation, there is a swing away from food service. This has potentially negative implications for the Australian olive industry, with some lower quality olive oil being diverted from the current food service channel into the retail channel. Consumers need to be reminded to always buy reputable brands and look for the AOA Certified Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil logo. *The Olive Wellness Institute website has a wealth of science-based information on the health benefits of olive products to reference and share with consumers – www. olivewellnessinstitute.org. than usual, and we created a Cure Your Own Table Olive kit, which gave people in lockdown a project. This was only available online and sales results were great, as people added the kit and products to orders, increasing the average sale size.

“We also collaborated with a restaurant wine company with an e-offer on their wine to our customer database, so we could get some commission on their sales.

“Hence a new focus on collaborative marketing with other businesses is on the plans for the next 12 months, along with a focus on local provenance.”

Kapiti Olives: diversification

David and Helen Walshaw have seen both positive and negative outcomes from the New Zealand shutdown, and said they’d gained valuable insight from it.

“While we have had a reduction in some sectors of our market - restaurants, hotels and cafes and outdoor markets - we have had increases in others - retail, website and direct mail/telephone - which illustrates the

need to diversify,” David said.

“This certainly applies to customers but also probably in product range as well.

“We have always had an online presence and customers are increasingly taking advantage of our ability to fulfil orders on our website. We have made sure we feature on other website portals as well, and there are many springing up.

“We are reviewing the way we do things but we do this incrementally anyway and there will not be big changes coming from this period. That said, as mentioned above, we are even more conscious of the need to diversify.”

Aquiferra: direct contact

Shona Thompson and Bob Marshall’s sales were also spread across a number of channels, most of which were hit heavily by the COVID-19 shutdown. One, however, proved incredibly valuable when combined with a little deskwork.

“For the last 12 years we have sold our oil at two farmers markets in Hawke's Bay,

42 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

as well as supplying six restaurants. We also had small but consistent online sales, usually people from outside Hawke’s Bay who had tried our oils at either a market or a restaurant,” Shona said.

“Some of our restaurant customers have only just re-opened, providing takeaways, so there have been no sales there yet. The markets are still closed too, but many of our customers have contacted us via our website.

We're probably down about 60% on normal sales, but if we hadn't made an effort to increase online sales we would have been much worse off.

“At the markets we provided EVOO refills,

“In the first week of the lockdown we emailed or phoned all of our refill customers” - Shona Thompson, Aquiferra and as a part of our food safety programme kept contact information for all of our refill customers. So in the first week of the lockdown we emailed or phoned all of them (about 95% local) and said we could provide oil via courier, and would waive courier costs.

“We were delighted at the response and it markedly increased our online sales.”

Kakariki Olives: website and web sites

Likewise, Kakariki Olives’ pre-COVID sales model included a good cross-sectional market: farmers markets accounted for 50%, restaurants 15% and another 10% each went to commercial bulk sales, domestic bulk sales, and bottles and refill oil to retail outlets.

The broad spread didn’t help, however, when the shutdown happened and their business was “hugely affected”.

“In late February there was a sudden decrease in oil sales to restaurants in tourist spots that we supply, and then the local restaurants all had to close down,” owner Brenda Gregory said.

“The market was also closed on 16 March and that impacted hard: this is our biggest and best way to sell EVOO and educate people. And while our bulk sales are still needed, that amount will halve as our buyer had a tourist market that will not, of course, be there.”

So they immediately made some changes to get things moving again.

“We were already on Facebook and Instagram, but we set up a web page so people could email to order oil. The web page has been fantastic for the customers who don’t do social media,” Brenda said.

Olive business

“We have also joined a few sites such as Deliver Eats.

“Then once we went to level three restrictions, we started doing contactless delivery and refilling of olive oil. This has been hugely popular and really worthwhile for us. We’re seeing both new customers and old ones from the Saturday market, and we’ve had such positive feedback that it may be something we continue with.

“The web page has been fantastic for the customers who don’t do social media” Brenda Gregory, Kakariki Olives “We are so thankful for the ongoing support from our local customers, and new ones generated through our web page. We are positive for the future but this may be somewhat different: we will adapt to the market.”

More information: www.mountzeroolives. com; www.alto-olives.com.au; www. telegraphhill.co.nz; www.kapitiolives.co.nz; www.aquiferra.co.nz; www.kakarikiolives.co.nz.

For producers like Kapiti Olives, the closure of outdoor markets has illustrated the need to diversify.

Tell your provenance story and stand out from the crowd Now, more than ever, consumers are demanding to know more about where and how their food and fibre is produced. And for Australian producers, building provenance and storytelling can play a critical role in sustaining, increasing or expanding market share. It is now a mainstream marketing approach for businesses of all sizes and increasingly, it is key to connecting with Australian consumers who want to understand the who, the where and the how behind the food and fibre they consume.

Provenance toolkit AgriFutures Australia has developed a toolkit of resources to help Australian producers build provenance and improve

their storytelling. Providing practical, easy to navigate and relevant tools for celebrating and sharing your provenance story, the resources will help businesses connect and better interact with consumers - both domestic and overseas - now and into the future.

The resources include: • a summary of consumer trends towards provenance, and technologies and platforms for sharing production stories; • practical guide and templates to help producers share their stories; • case studies outlining how producers are capitalising on the benefits of improved provenance storytelling within their businesses.

Download the Provenance Toolkit resources from the AgriFutures Australia website: www.agrifutures.com.au, where you’ll also find further information on The Consumer Trends and Storytelling Technologies report.

Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 43

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Thinking about a co-operative?

A new hotline service has been launched to provide support to Australian producers wanting to work together to establish and grow farm co-operatives.

The Co-operative Farming hotline is just one element of the Federal Government supported Co-operative Farming project, which provides farmers with information and resources to support them in setting up or growing a co-operative. The new hotline allows those interested in the concept of co-operatives to find out more, with team members available to discuss their individual needs and receive advice on the resources available to support them.

Co-operatives in Australia

According to the Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutual (BCCM), there are currently 230 primary producer-owned co-ops in Australia, owned by around 20,000 farmers, fishers and foresters.

The National Mutual Economy Report 2019 showed a combined turnover of $6.6 billion for the top 13 producer-owned co-ops.

The co-op difference

BCCM CEO Melina Morrison said that the co-operative model has unique benefits, particularly in times of economic difficulty.

“Farmers across regional Australia are doing it tough at the moment, battling drought, recent bushfires and now facing supply chain disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic,” she said.

“Co-operative enterprises are business vehicles that enable farmers to work together and support each other. Agricultural co-operatives are facing the same challenges as other farm businesses but by pulling together they are able to respond in innovative ways.

“Co-ops don’t have the option of going to the market for a fast capital injection, so they have more robust capital contingencies and plan ahead for ‘black swan’ events. They can pull forward rebates to members to help with short term cash-flow and they can extend patient credit terms. They will always put the member - the farmer - first.”

The Co-operative Farming project

Co-operative Farming is an 18-month project designed to support farmers, fishers and foresters through the formation of new farming

44 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

co-operatives, and to foster the resilience and growth of developing farming co-operatives.

Supported by a $2.5M Australian Government grant, the project includes: • a farm co-operative advice and information hotline • access to the knowledge of co-operative experts via a farm co-operative mentoring program (from mid-2020) • financial support through an educational bursaries program • an interactive website with educational assets including tools, resources and course modules (from June 2020).

Getting started

Primary producers and producer-owned enterprises can contact the Co-operative Farming hotline on 1300 665 174 or email coopfarming@bccm.coop for more information on support and opportunities available through the Co-operative Farming - future proofing Aussie farmers program.

These include a program of interactive online forums and meet-ups to deliver Co-operative Farming through the COVID-19 crisis until field events can once again be scheduled.

More information: www.farmingtogether.com.au; www.getmutual.coop.

The Co-operative Farming project is supported by the Department of Agriculture, through funding from Australian Government’s Starting Farm Co-operative Program.

Olive business

Best Practice Series

The OliveCare® program is all about helping olive producers achieve quality. With that aim, the Best Practice Series of articles discusses how to increase the yield of premium EVOO through best practice management strategies from the grove to the consumer.

Food recalls and traceability Peter McFarlane, AOA OliveCare® Administrator

One of the issues needing to be contemplated by food producers is recalls, and it’s important that all producers are prepared should the situation arise. A crucial element of dealing with a food recall is traceability, which allows fast identification and tracking of all inputs and processes throughout the supply chain. This assists with a rapid response - the best way to reduce damage to your brand and business. So let’s look at how and why food recalls happen and what you as a producer need to do, including the all-important element of traceability.

Food recalls

A food recall is action taken by a food business to remove unsafe food from distribution, sale and consumption. All food businesses must be able to quickly remove food from the marketplace to protect public health and safety. Food Safety Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) co-ordinates and monitors food recalls in Australia. In New Zealand, food recalls are co-ordinated by the Ministry for Primary Industries.

FSANZ cannot order or force a recall because it has no enforcement powers. These powers rest with the (state and territory) jurisdictions. However, most recalls are initiated by food businesses.

What to do if you need to recall a food

Follow your food recall plan. It is important to stop the distribution and sale of the product as soon as possible: • let your customers know about the recall and what they need to do (remove product from sale); • notify your local food enforcement agency and confirm what level the recall should be (consumer or trade); • call the FSANZ recall co-ordinator and provide them with information about the recall - 02 6271 2610 between 9am-5pm Monday-Friday or 0412 166 965 after hours; • decide how you will notify the public.

This might be the local newspaper, your website or social media. This can be discussed with your food enforcement authority.

You will also need to fill out the FSANZ Food Recall Report (**see information on templates in this article) and email details to food.recalls@foodstandards.gov.au as soon as possible.

The following timeline provides a simple checklist of what to do and when. The

FSANZ recall team is available to help you through the process.

How to prepare for a recall

FSANZ’s Food Recall Plan Template** can help you develop your own recall plan in an easy to follow, quick reference style. This template should be used together with the Food Industry Recall Protocol, also available for download on the website, which provides more comprehensive guidance.

FSANZ's webpage on how to recall food is a useful resource for staff training and mock recalls.

Under clause 12 of Standard 3.2.2 – Food Safety Practices and General Requirements, all food manufacturers, importers and wholesale suppliers must have a written Food Recall Plan**. The plan should cover the procedures, records and staff responsibilities a business needs in place for a food recall.

All food businesses should make sure their recall plan is correct, up to date and relevant for their particular operations.

Why is food recalled?

Food is recalled because of a report or complaint from manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, government or consumers. It might also result from a food business’s own testing and auditing.

Recalls are classified according to the problem with the food. These problems can include: • microbial - contamination with pathogenic microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses or parasites • labelling - non-compliant labelling, incorrect food ingredients on the ingredient list, incorrect date markings or other food labelling errors • foreign matter - contamination with material such as glass, metal or plastic objects • chemical/other contaminants contamination with substances such as cleaning products, pesticides, machine oil, etc • undeclared allergen - due to incorrect

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Food recall templates (**)

labelling, incorrect packaging or contamination of the product by an allergen packaging fault - where a fault in the food packaging results in contamination (presence of glass/metal etc) of the food or a potential choking hazard • biotoxin - contamination with biological toxins such as histamine in fish and paralytic shellfish toxin in oysters • other - for example, unsafe levels of additives or presence of a therapeutic drug.

Types of food recalls

Food recalls can be at the trade or consumer level.

A consumer recall is the most extensive type, recovering the food from all points in the production and distribution chain, including from consumers.

A trade recall recovers food that has not been sold directly to consumers. It involves recovering the product from distribution centres and wholesalers, and may also include hospitals, restaurants or other catering establishments.

A food withdrawal is different from a food recall. It involves removing food from the supply chain where there is no public health or safety issue (e.g. if the product is underweight or has a quality defect).

Traceability

Traceability is the ability to track any food through all stages of production, processing and distribution (including importation and at retail). Traceability should mean that movements can be traced one step backwards and one step forward at any point in the supply chain.

For food processing businesses, traceability should extend to being able to identify the source of all food inputs such as: • raw materials

• additives • other ingredients • packaging.

Why is traceability important?

Traceability enables corrective actions (such as a product recall) to be implemented quickly and effectively when something goes wrong. When a potential food safety problem is identified, whether by a food business or a government agency, an effective traceability system can help isolate and prevent contaminated products from reaching consumers.

Traceability allows food businesses to target the product(s) affected by a food safety problem, minimising disruption to trade and any potential public health risks. It is important for all food businesses (including retailers and importers) to be able to trace products.

What are the characteristics of a traceability system?

An effective traceability system relies on being able to track product one step forward and one step back at any point in the supply chain. The system a food business has in place includes any procedures for identifying producers, suppliers, customers and products and the records kept including: • name and address (and other contact details) of suppliers and a description of products or inputs supplied • name and addresses (and other contact details) of customers and a description of the product supplied to them • date of transaction or delivery • batch or lot identification (or other markings) • volume or quantity of product supplied or received • any other relevant production records.

46 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • June 2020 • Issue 116

The FSANZ website has a number of templates for food recall processes available for download. Covering planning, action and management stages, and with explanatory and regulatory information provided where needed, the templates provide an invaluable resource for food producers of any size. The documents include: • food recall report • Food Recall Plan • notify your business customers of the recall • distribution list • post-recall report • press advertisement • media release • radio advertisement To reference and download the documents, go to www.foodstandards. gov.au and search for “food recall templates”.

What are the Food Standards Code requirements?

Standard 3.2.2 - Food Safety Practices and General Requirements in chapter 3 of the Code covers the “one step back and one step forward” elements of traceability under Clause 5 (2) Food receipt and Clause 12 Food recall.

Food receipt

In relation to food receipt, a food business must be able to provide information about what food it has on the premises and where it came from.

A food business must provide, to the reasonable satisfaction of an authorised officer upon request, the following information relating to food on the food premises: • the name and business address in Australia of the vendor, manufacturer or packer or, in the case of food imported into Australia, the name and business address in Australia of the importer; and • the prescribed name or, if there is no prescribed name, an appropriate designation of the food.

This means that a food business must not receive a food unless it is able to identify the name of the food and the name of the supplier.

Food recall

A food business engaged in the wholesale supply, manufacture or importation of food must have a system, set out in a written document, to ensure it can recall unsafe food. The system should include records covering:

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• production records • what products are manufactured or supplied • volume or quantity of products manufactured or supplied • batch or lot identification (or other markings) • where products are distributed • any other relevant production records.

This information should be readily accessible in order to know what, how much and from where product needs to be recalled.

More information: www.foodstandards.gov. au/industry/foodrecalls; www.foodstandards. gov.au/industry/safetystandards/traceability. © Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

OliveCare® product traceability and recall procedure

Important: a lot identification/batch number is mandatory.

Olive oil needs to be traceable back to the grove in order to comply with HACCP requirements.

Australian Standard 12.2.6, Lot Identification states: “Each container shall be embossed or otherwise permanently marked in a code or in clear writing to identify the producing factory and the lot in accordance with the Australia New Zealand food standards code.”

The lot number is usually printed on back label with the Best Before Date (BBD) but may be printed on the top, side or bottom of the container.

A system of product tracing is required to trace a problem back to its source: • growers need paperwork to identify the block(s) from where the batch originated • processors need paperwork to identify the grove and date of delivery • bottlers need to be able to identify the source of the oil • wholesalers/traders need to identify customers to whom bulk or bottled oil is on-sold • samples of each batch of oil should be retained for later testing • bottles of oil ready for sale to the public should be able to be traced back to the bottling plant and grove that grew the olives.

2D barcodes the future for retail food safety Food safety within the retail sector is currently entering a new era, with the introduction of the 2D barcode promising to improve traceability and cut product recall food waste.

For the past 45 years retailers have used 1D linear barcodes that identify the object, largely for pricing and stock purposes. Unlike those traditional barcodes, the new contentrich 2D barcodes enable multiple data elements to be available at point-of-sale, including product batch/lot number, serial number, best before date, use-by date, pack date, weight and price.

The data is stored in two dimensions, rather than in just a series of black and white bars, and the graphics look like checkerboards or a series of traditional barcodes stacked atop one another.

Consumer benefits

The ability to add expiry and best before dates to a product’s barcode will help eliminate any risk of retailers selling out-ofdate products to customers. If an expired product is scanned at point-of-sale, the information contained in the 2DBarcode will alert the customer and prohibit the product from being purchased.

Similarly, the sale of potentially dangerous recalled products can be stopped at the register, as the system will identify the recall details during scanning and won’t allow the purchase to take place.

Future developments will also see consumers able to access the stored information on their smartphones.

Producer benefits

Currently, the product recall process requires all recalled product stock from a manufacturer to be removed from supermarket shelves and

the supply chain, and to be disposed of. The information supplied by 2D barcodes will allow retailers to pinpoint the specific batch of affected product and trace it back through the supply chain and production line. This will not only make it easier to identify the source of contamination but also avoid sending unaffected products to landfill.

Supplier and retailer benefits

As above, the big benefit is that food products can be recalled or withdrawn by batch lot number and the affected batch lots can be identified more accurately within the supply chain. This means only the affected products need to be removed from warehouses and supermarket shelves.

The 2D barcodes also help increase food freshness and sustainability: the extra data enables improvements to date management, enhancing product rotation to increase food freshness and reduce waste.

The new data-embedded barcode technology also has the potential to improve the traceability of the farm-to-fork journey in the future.

Australian trial

Woolworths conducted a successful pilot trial of 2D barcodes in a trial in the latter part of 2019 and will now work with industry bodies and suppliers to develop a phased roll out plan for adoption of the new technology.

2D barcodes and olive products

AOA OliveCare® Code of Best Practice Administrator Peter McFarlane said that, while fresh, perishable food products are the early focus of the new technology, it also provides benefits for those involved in processed food production.

“This technology is also applicable to processed product, including table olives and olive oil,” he said.

“Increased recognition of the importance of best before dates, and adherence to stock rotation, will assist in ensuring that consumers are buying fresh, healthy olive products.

“This is particularly relevant to EVOO, which as we know is not always getting the supply chain attention it needs and deserves.

“The ability to be able to recognise specific product batches at the checkout is also a good concept, and should make product recall less costly to the manufacturer.”

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Labelling: the truth, and nothing but the truth With new season’s EVOO now not far off bottling, AOA OliveCare® Code of Practice Administrator Peter McFarlane has provided Olivegrower readers with a timely prompt about the significance of marketing and label claims, reminding producers that what you say on or about your products must be true, and you must ensure that all claims can be substantiated.

ACCC focus on food product claims

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) enforcement and compliance priorities for 2020 include: Misleading conduct in relation to the sale and promotion of food products, including health and nutritional claims, credence claims and country of origin.

During the last AOA market survey, 127 OliveCare® signatory EVOO labels were examined and it was found that: • 127 (100%) made an EVOO classification claim.

It’s positive to note that all 20 certified brands tested over the past two years of the AOA market survey met the required test parameters for EVOO classification under AS5264-2011.

• 73 (57%) made a state or regional provenance claim.

The reminder here is that in short crop years, ensure you source ‘top-up’ product that meets your provenance claims.

• 11 (9%) made an organic certification claim While you may practice organic principles, unless your business is certified organic, you can’t make a claim to be ‘organic’.

• 6 (5%) made a premium or ultra-premium credence claim Can you definitively answer the question ‘What makes your oil so special?’ – and back it up with proof?

What you put on your label is extremely important, and has ramifications: “If for marketing purposes a producer makes a credence claim there is a legal expectation that the claim can be substantiated; otherwise it can be argued that these claims are misleading to consumers who are not in a position to be able to verify these claims.”

Premium claims

Businesses often make claims about their products in an attempt to obtain a selling advantage. ‘Premium claims’ is a broad term used to describe a claim that gives the impression that a product, or one of its attributes, has some kind of added benefit when compared to similar products and services. These claims go beyond generic descriptions of products.

Claims may suggest a product is superior to others in its class (‘extra virgin olive oil’) or offers a nutritional benefit (‘no added colours or preservatives’). The premium claim may also promote a product as being of a perceived quality based on its country of origin (‘Swiss chocolate’, ‘Belgian beer’ or ‘German engineered’).

Businesses also commonly use the word ‘free’ in making premium claims (e.g. ‘free from additives’). The word ‘free’ is powerful and absolute. If the product does in fact contain the thing that it claims to be ‘free from’, the seller should consider a different claim that accurately describes the product – e.g. food labelled as ‘pesticide free’ must be 100% free of pesticide residues.

Premium claims may influence consumers’ purchasing decisions if they give the impression that the products are a better choice than those without the claimed added benefit. As consumers are often unable to assess the accuracy of premium claims, you must ensure that the claims you make can be substantiated.

Organic claims

An organic claim is any claim that describes a product, or the ingredients used to make the product, as ‘organic’.

For example, product labels or marketing materials may claim a product is ‘100% organic’, ‘made using organic ingredients’ or ‘certified organic’. The word ‘organic’ in the context of food and drink refers to agricultural products that have been farmed according to certain practices.

Consumers cannot easily verify for themselves whether a product is organic and should be able to trust that any ‘organic’ claim is accurate. **Note: while organic certification is not legally required for a product supplied in Australia to be described as ‘organic’, businesses must be able to substantiate any such claims.

And while the Australian Standard (AS) 6000–2015 Organic and biodynamic products is a voluntary standard, and businesses do not necessarily have to meet the requirements of this standard in order to label and sell their products as ‘organic’

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World’s BEST EVOO. High polyphenols so won’t go rancid

With legislation in place to enforce labelling compliance, if you can’t substantiate a claim – or it just isn’t true – it’s not worth putting it on your label.

within Australia, any product displaying the AS 6000–2015 Organic and biodynamic products label must meet the requirements outlined in the standard.

Environmental claims

Similarly, if you wish to make environmental claims about your business or your products, they should be honest, accurate and able to be substantiated. You should clearly explain, in simple language, the significance of the benefit to the environment – e.g. if you state that your packaging is ‘100% recyclable’, you must ensure that is the case – and again, be able to substantiate it.

The stick

The Australian Consumer Law (set out in the Competition and Consumer Act 2010) is complemented by Standard 1.2.7 of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, which regulates what nutritional and health claims can be made about certain foods.

These regulations are applied, and the ACCC does both investigate and act on infringements: in 2012 an olive oil producer received penalties totalling $13,200 for labelling products as 'extra virgin olive oil' which ACCC testing indicated were not of that standard.

So when you’re prepping your next batch of products for sale, ensure that: • the actual product in the packaging is reflected on the label • the information is accurate and true • any claims made can be substantiated.

More information: www.accc.gov.au/ publications/advertising-selling.

Olives and health

Health round-up Continuing our regular round-up of the latest relevant health research from around the world, to keep you up to date and in the know…

Swapping sat fats for olive oil lowers heart health risks (not just in Med countries) New research has proven that swapping fats like butter and margarine with olive oil can significantly lower the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) and total cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the study investigated whether the known association between olive oil consumption and a lower risk of CVD in Mediterranean populations also exists in the US population.

The study included dietary data from 61,181 women and 31,797 men, obtained at four-year intervals over 24 years. All participants were free of cancer, heart disease and stroke at commencement of the study.

A total of 9,797 cases of CVD were recorded during the 24 years of follow-up, including 6,034 of CHD and 3,802 of stroke. After adjusting for major diet and lifestyle factors, and compared with nonconsumers, the researchers found that participants with higher olive

oil intake (more than half a tablespoon/day) had a 14% lower risk of CVD and 18% lower risk of CHD. No significant associations were observed in regard to stroke.

They also found that replacing 5g/day of margarine, butter, mayonnaise or dairy fat with the equivalent amount of olive oil reduced the risk of total CVD and CHD by 5-7%. In a subset of participants, higher olive oil intake was also associated with lower levels of circulating inflammatory biomarkers and a better lipid profile.

They concluded that the study “generates new evidence suggesting that replacement of more saturated fats, such as butter and margarine, with healthy plant-based fats such as olive oil is beneficial for the primary prevention of CVD.” Source: www.onlinejacc.org.

… and if you fry with olive oil, you’ll stay healthy for longer Eating more food fried in olive oil can delay unhealthy aging, according to a study undertaken by researchers in Spain.

Published in the online journal Clinical Nutrition, the study looked at how changes in fried food consumption over a three-year period were linked to unhealthy aging over three and six year timeframes.

The study involved 2043 individuals aged ≥60 years, recruited in 2008-2010 and followed up to 2012 and 2015. Fried food consumption was ascertained with a validated diet history, and unhealthy aging was measured with a 52-item health deficit accumulation index.

Participants who increased their intake of fried food showed less deficit accumulation over three years, but not over six years of follow-up. Conversely, greater three-year deficit accumulation was

observed when 100 g/day of fried food was replaced with an equal amount of non-fried food.

Of particular note were that fried protein-rich food, especially fish and eggs, had the strongest associations with reduced deficit accumulation; also that increased olive oil intake was significantly associated with less three-year deficit accumulation, both as total olive oil consumption and olive oil consumed with non-fried food.

The researchers concluded that, in a Mediterranean country where olive oil is the most common frying medium, increased fried food consumption was associated with delayed unhealthy aging over three years of follow-up.

Source: www.doi.org.

Med Diet boosts male fertility Eating a Mediterranean diet (containing plenty of EVOO, of course) may be one way to boost your chances of having offspring, with a new Spanish study finding that adherence to a healthy diet improves sperm quality.

Published in the journal Human Reproduction Update, the study involved a systematic review of observational studies related to the effects of diet and nutrition on male fertility. The data showed that low sperm quality parameters are inversely related to diets that are high in healthful nutrients and low in saturated and trans fats - similar

in composition to the MedDiet. Specific foods were also linked to high quality semen and again, the MedDiet ticks pretty well all the nutritional boxes for a sperm-friendly eating regime.

The researchers concluded that “male adherence to a healthy diet could improve semen quality and fecundability rates”, providing a positive influence on the chance of pregnancy or fertilization rates in their partners.

Sources: www.pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov; www.oliveoiltimes.com.

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Issue 116 • June 2020 • Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor • 49

your calendar of olive events

What’s on

2020 Jun

20 June Winners announced, LA International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition – LA, USA www.fairplex.com

Jul

1 July Entries open, 2020 Australian International Olive Awards www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia. com.au May

Aug

29 August Results announced, Golden Olive Awards – Vic, Australia www.australianoliveawards.com.au

Sep

September TBA World Team Tasting Championship www.savantes.org 4 September Entries close, 2020 Australian International Olive Awards www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia. com.au 11 September Entries close, 2020 Hunter Olive Show – Hunter Valley, NSW www.hunterolives.asn.au 19 September Judging, 2020 Australian International Olive Awards www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia. com.au

Oct

5 October Major awards announced, 2020 Australian International Olive Awards www.internationaloliveawardsaustralia. com.au 15-16 October TBC 2020 National Olive Conference – Virtual Edition www.nationaloliveconference.com.au 22 October Awards Presentation, 2020 Hunter Olive Show – Hunter Valley, NSW www.hunterolives.asn.au

2021 Feb Mar Jun Oct

16-17 February evokeAG. – Perth, WA www.evokeag.com 23-25 March Soil CRC Participants Conference www.soilcrc.com.au 7-9 June Hort Connections 2021 – Brisbane, Qld www.hortconnections.com.au 15-17 October 2021 National Olive Conference & Trade Exhibition - Devonport, Tasmania www.nationaloliveconference.com.au

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50

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