Organic farmer George Doutsias, head of the Interprofessional Table Olives Organization (DOEPEL), addressed the group on Wednesday, beginning with an anecdote. “European Union-level negotiations on Common Agricultural Policy are mainly focused on olive oil. Of course, the Italians were at the forefront, dominating talks,” he said. “When the discussion was over and just as participants were readying to leave, a Greek farmer stopped them, saying ‘We forgot table olives.’” The punch line, according to Doutsias, is that table olives have been forgotten in Greece also.
DOEPEL has the participation of groups involved in the production sector with individual agriculturalists and co-operatives, but there are also members involved in processing, with organized units for the treatment, processing, standardization, packaging and marketing of table olives. Created as a specialized institutional group able to represent all those involved in the product while finding solutions to problems and defend the product on a national level as well as abroad.
“We can talk all we want about agricultural production that could spearhead growth, but it’s not enough to produce, we need to create farm products that have added value – original products,” says Klearchos Sarantidis, general manager of the Kavala Co-op that produces table olives.
“We can talk all we want about agricultural production that could spearhead growth, but it’s not enough to produce, we need to create farm products that have added value – original products”
“Table olives are a little like wine,” he says, adding that these need to be fermented and mature so that the product can acquire a unique, differentiated character.
Today, though table olives make up one of the strongest sectors of Greece’s export economy, yielding 450 million euros for the country – matching the success of another, more recognizable exports, feta. 80 percent of local produce from three types of table olives – Chalkidiki tangy green, black meaty Kalamon and konsorvoelia. Greece is the second largest exporter in the world, responsible for 8 percent of international production of table olives.
Noteworthy is the fact that the sector has doubled exports from 2005 to today, sending 170,000 tons of olives to more than 100 countries from a total production of 200,000 tons. In this way, table olives that are cultivated by 62,000 producers and treated and processed by more than 100 organizations make up 9.2 percent of Greece’s exports in the agricultural sector.
For this reason, Doutsias describes table olives as a “natural treasure”, indicating that olive oil that is constantly talked about is produced mainly for internal consumption.
Originally published in kathimerini.com
“Table olives that are cultivated by 62,000 producers and treated and processed by more than 100 organizations make up 9.2 percent of Greece’s exports in the agricultural sector”
