The olive has grown in California for centuries — and the American industry is now serious.
Olives are not only a Mediterranean crop. They have grown in California since the Spanish Franciscan missionaries planted the Mission olive in the eighteenth century, and that tree founded the American industry. Today California leads a real and growing olive-oil sector — with Texas, Arizona and Georgia adding to it — much of it planted with imported stars like the Spanish Arbequina.
American extra virgin is often fresher than imported oil simply because it travels less, and California’s labelling rules are among the strictest anywhere. The American olives we’ve covered so far are below; more to come as the industry grows.