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olive growers in the Central Valley saying damage from the severe January freeze has become evident in California olive groves. The Olive Growers Council says young trees planted in colder areas seem hardest hit. One farmer lost about half of a 30-acre grove. The freeze also damaged bud wood on mature trees, which will produce [...]

By Harold McGee, FOR a newcomer to the world of olive oil connoisseurship, the sound effects from the 20 or so tasters at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona, Calif., were startling. The low murmurs of discussion were punctuated by loud, sharp slurps, and loud, sharp coughs. Slurps and coughs, hour after hour. On [...]

Lots of jazz music will share the stage with the olive industry when the arts-and-wine community of Los Olivos celebrates its heritage Saturday, June 2. The third annual Los Olivos Jazz and Olive Festival, which is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Los Olivos, will run from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Principal jazz, olive and [...]

California’s emerging olive-oil industry hears a call for quality surpassing “extra-virgin” that will stand out in a troubled, competitive market. By Jim Downing, Picture by Florence Low, Will American consumers pay more for olive oil that claims to be even more pristine than extra-virgin? Will they even be able to tell the difference? With the [...]

• Biggest spring bloom in years. • Just in time to meet growing demand. This could be a “rebound year” in California’s olive groves. Farmers say the growing season is off to a good start. “We just started blooming this month and we’re excited. We haven’t seen a bloom this big in quite a few [...]

May 22-23, Tuesday and Wednesday — “Beyond Extra Virgin: Italo-Californian Olive Oil Conference” will bring together olive growers; olive oil producers, processors and marketers; food service providers and restaurateurs; and researchers and educators to discuss current practices and potential new innovations in producing and marketing consistently high-quality olive oils. Experts and scientists will make recommendations [...]

Fresno State Orchards Estate Reserve Olive Oil has won its second consecutive medal and will be showcased at the Beyond Extra Virgin: Italo-Californian Olive Oil Conference on May 22-23 in Davis. The 2006 harvest olive oil produced by students at California State University, Fresno won a bronze medal at the Yolo County Fair competition judged [...]

By Larry Gordon, Take 130 trees dropping olives on campus walkways. Add in students seeking prankish respite from their studies. Mix in a French-born university president with a taste for Mediterranean cuisine. That’s the formula for making olive oil at Caltech. The institution better known for rocket science is launching its own brand of the [...]

Written by Tim Daly, If you haven’t heard of the Corto Olive company yet, you will fairly soon. Corto Olive is located near Stockton and the company is hoping to make a very big splash in the olive oil industry. Corto is planting thousands of trees near Lodi and Stockton and hoping to produce about [...]

Alan Greene, vice president of sales and marketing for California Olive Ranch in Oroville, has been elected Board President for the widely respected California Olive Oil Council. “The COOC welcomes the leadership and vision Alan brings to the COOC and the entire industry. As dramatic growth continues, the board, with Alan at the helm is [...]

by Kathleen Jay, Located west of Petaluma in Marin County, McEvoy Ranch offers guided tours of its 550-acre property, which includes more than 18,000 olive trees. Heat, air and light. These are the three big no-nos when it comes to extra-virgin olive oil. On a recent tour of three Bay Area olive oil makers — [...]

In response to growing demand for organic olive oil and an increasingly competitive market, University of California Cooperative Extension farm advisors and researchers have produced an organic olive production manual. “Organic olive oil production could be a significant niche in California’s agriculture industry,” says Paul Vossen, UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor in Sonoma and Marin [...]

By Katy Budge, Lee Alegre and Adriana Marquez work together in Templeton to market Alegre Olive Oil Company products and Adriana’s Gourmet Olive Tapenade. Thanks to his vineyard management business, most people probably associate Lee Alegre with grapes, but lately he’s teamed up with close family friends Art and Norma Ornelas and business partner Adriana [...]

By: Maia Bradley, Bike accidents are the pits – olive pits, that is, from the more than 1,500 olive trees growing around the UC Davis campus. Strewn and smashed all over the university’s bike lanes in past years, the oily fruit posed a problem to cyclists and grounds keepers. With some creativity, though, that problem [...]

By Deidre Woollard, Perhaps you’ve given up on the California winery dream, too labor intensive, too confusing and the market is crowded with small winemakers. How about the olive company dream? Today’s estate in Goleta, California offers you the chance to become the owner of a 101 acre ranch that is home to over 5,000 [...]