Archive for the 'Ecology | Environment' Category

18 Feb

Olives May Be Rescued By Helpful Wasp

By Marcia Wood, Olives basking in sunny California groves might find that their new best friend is a small brown wasp. Known to scientists as Psyttalia cf. concolor, the little wasp can help foil the olive fruit fly, a powerful natural enemy of olives. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist Victoria Y. Yokoyama and colleagues have […]

23 Dec

Feeding ruminants with olive by-products enhances animal performance and product quality

By Antonio Marín Ruiz, A study from the CSIC, Spain and the University of Wales, U.K determines that consuming products rich in oil increase the content of mono-unsaturated fatty acids and lower the content of saturated fatty acid in milk and meat of goats and sheep. Olive leaves provide half of the energy and amino […]

16 Dec

Italian and Tunisian researchers relate olive oil quality with fruit ripening

The study tested the ideal ripening stage to extract an olive oil with proper chemical profiles and the best oxidation levels. The chemical composition and quality of virgin olive oil may be influenced by genotype and different agronomic and technological factors. Extra virgin olive oil is considered to be the best olive oil for its […]

15 Dec

Australian olive industry boosted by government-funded R&D

The Australian Olive Association is predicting a 30% to 40% increase in olive oil production in 2009. This growth of the industry has been underpinned by research and development done with the support of the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. Paul Miller, president of the Australian Olive Association, said research and development funded by […]

11 Dec

BGU, Beduin make modern olive press

By Judy Siegel-Itzkovich, Ben-Gurion University researchers have launched a unique collaboration with Beduin entrepreneurs to develop a modern olive press in the Negev- just in time for the olive harvest. For the past two years, the Beersheba researchers have had professional ties with Negev Beduin in the production of olive oil. The multi-disciplinary BGU team […]