April in the Olive Grove

You will have noticed that some of your olives are changing colour as we get closer to harvest.  Over the next few weeks olives will transition from green through yellow-green to then show a blush of purple.  This will progress at different rates for different varieties and is also influenced by the amount of sunshine we get during that time.  Any one tree will have olives with a variety of colours.  When the olives turn deep purple/black they will also start to feel a little soft if squeezed but they may not necessarily be ripe enough to harvest. 
​The chart below shows the different stages of ripening.  You will see 4-7 show olives black on the outside but 4 and 5 are still creamy on the inside, 7 is black right through the flesh. Take some samples from your trees and cut a wedge out to check the inside colour change.
Creamy flesh on the inside (4) is less ripe and will have a lower oil content and a more bitter flavour. Olive flesh which is all black (7) will have a mild flavour but a higher oil content.  A good olive oil will be a mix of both ends of the scale and also your personal taste.

​There is a bit of observation and judgement, personal preference, logistics, weather and timing to consider when preparing for your upcoming olive harvest so start thinking about it now. Gather a team of pickers, get your equipment – bins, rakes, mats, collect/buy your food safe containers for the olive oil. 
 
 
Harvest 2025
Olive harvest season usually runs from late May, through June finishing in early July. We will give you definitive dates in the May newsletter as well as information about booking a pressing and how to access the necessary forms. If you want to do a bit of pre reading to see what the forms entail then have a look on our website olivepressmarlborough.co.nz.  but don’t send anything in until we are up and running.                                          
 
Olive Pomace Waste Charge
This end product of processing is a product which is increasingly difficult and expensive to dispose of on a large scale.  Last year we offered a pressing fee rebate for growers to take their pomace waste away and use it in a variety of ways –garden mulch, compost mix, nutrients for olive trees, etc.  We had a 50% uptake and have had a wide variety of mostly positive feedback scenarios.
 
We believe growers should be taking their pomace away. So, this year we have added a waste charge. 
Those who do not take their waste away will be charged 10 cents per kg based on the weight of olives in. For example, if you bring in 400kg of olives you will be expected to take away 400kg of pomace.  If not, there will be an extra charge added of $40.
Olive pomace is quite sloppy so you will need a leak proof container to bring in with you, for the return of waste, when you bring in your olives for processing. For example if you bring in 400kg of olives in a large grape bin you could take the pomace away in the same bin.  Just another thing to plan for!!
 
Pressing charges for 2025
Processing costs will remain the same as last year. Shareholders will pay $1.25 plus GST/kg and non shareholders/casuals will pay $1.75 plus GST/kg.  The leaf blowing charge will also remain the same at .50cent/kg plus GST and will be applied at the discretion of the press operators at receival.
 
Trees to harvest
Olive Trees are full of fruit this year so don’t let that go to waste.   Mandy is compiling a list of people who have trees full of fruit but won’t be harvesting. She also wants to know from people who want to harvest but don’t have their own trees.  Get a group together and have a day harvesting someone else’s trees and you can have your own olive oil without needing to look after the trees.  If you are keen to harvest and are looking for trees send her an email at [email protected].  Also if you have trees loaded with fruit and won’t be harvesting them get in touch and Mandy will do a Mix and Match.
 
 
Shareholdings
We have growers wanting to buy shares.  If you have shares that you will never get a benefit from (i.e. more shares than you are ever going to use when offsetting the cost of pressing your olives) then we encourage you to sell those shares.  Please let me know as soon as possible and I will send through the necessary paperwork.  There is a lot to do during harvest so doing share transfers now is preferable to a last minute transaction