This week we have travelled from Turkey to Greece where we wanted to
learn more about the harvesting, production and the export of olives.
When we travelled
true Greece we have visited a local olive mill where the olives are washed to
remove the leaves, and are crushed to produce the liquid, which is extracted
from the olives.
The farmer
told us that there were two methods for the extraction of the olives. The first method is a traditional where
the pits are very important. In this method the pits are helping to channel the
oil when the paste is pressed. This process has duration for about half an
hour. After the pressing the paste is spread evenly over woven mats and go
under a second press, who separates the paste from the oil. There are just a few
more farmers here, who use this traditional method. This is because mainly
there are higher costs involved.
The second
and the most used method is the extraction based on a centrifuge. Here are the
olives crushed by several crushers who separate the flesh and oil.
Each year
Greece produces between the 300-and 400 thousand tonnes of oil and 75% of the
production is done by the second method.
They are
transporting their oil all over the world, but most particular to Italy who
buys three quarters of the total amount of the Greek olive oil transport.
I hope you
enjoyed reading this blog, and you have learned more about the Greek oil
industry. I am looking forward to post new updates of my trip, and give you interesting
facts.
