Greek olive oil industry changes in the last ten years feature several positive trends, as ten experts discuss in Part 2 of a two-part series. Part 1 considered problems and challenges. Now we turn to encouraging news about progress that includes educational efforts to improve quality and a growing interest in Greek olive oil’s flavor and health benefits.
Greek olive oil industry changes for the better: progress with education, quality, and recognition
In spite of continuing problems, a number of Greek olive oil sector changes have been beneficial in the past decade. Improvement has been evident to Eleftheria Germanaki, Manager of the Sensory Evaluation Laboratory of Crete ACR and an International Olive Oil Competition Judge. She has noticed a gradual movement “towards greater emphasis on quality and differentiation. Producers and olive mills have invested more in earlier harvesting, improved knowledge, and elevated understanding of the sensory profiles [aromas and flavors of olive oil], recognizing that quality must be preserved in all production and storage phases.”
Germanaki outlines three developments that stand out in recent years: “the growing professionalization of quality management and sensory evaluation”; more educational courses for producers, millers, and bottlers (in Crete, for example); and “a stronger focus on Greek varieties and regional identity, with PDO/PGI products and origin increasingly used as differentiation tools.”
“The increase of overall quality and appreciation is the most important” change in the Greek olive oil sector in the last ten years, according to Emmanouil Karpadakis, Secretary at the Exporters Association of Crete, and Olive Oil Production and Sensory Evaluation Expert. For this progress, he credits the young people and collaborative schemes that have been “applying more science-based cultivation practices and developing their own labels” or olive oil brands. Karpadakis also points out “an increased number of significant recognitions for Greek olive oil labels in high-level international competitions,” which raises awareness of the value of Greek extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) both in and beyond Greece.
Sharing knowledge at conferences to foster Greek olive oil industry evolution
Moreover, Karpadakis notes that “the continued recognition of the Mediterranean diet as the world’s best diet overall,” with EVOO “a fundamental part” of it, inspired “an increased number of very important olive oil-related conferences and forums here in Greece” in the past decade. In addition to numerous local and regional scientific and educational events, these have included the international Yale Symposium on Olive Oil & Health, Olive Oil & Table Olive Congress and Festival, Wine and Olive Oil in the Mediterranean Conference, Cretan Lifestyle Conference, and ELIA Lesvos Confest.
Fotini Tirpintiri, Organizer of the biennial ELIA Lesvos Confest, emphasizes the value of bringing scientists from such institutions as Yale University, the University of Athens, and the International Olive Council in dialogue with Greek olive farmers, olive oil professionals, entrepreneurs, and hospitality and gastronomy professionals to exchange knowledge and experience about olive oil in relation to a variety of topics.
The growing importance of Greek high-phenolic olive oil and evidence for its health benefits
One of the main topics at conferences on Greek olive oil has been its widely-recognized health benefits. Dr. Prokopios Magiatis, Associate Professor of Pharmacy at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and Dr. Eleni Melliou, President of the World Olive Center for Health, describe the past decade as “the period in which Greek olive oil started moving from being primarily an agricultural product toward becoming a scientifically characterized functional food, increasingly supported by human clinical evidence.” In Magiatis and Melliou’s opinion, during the last ten years the identity of Greek olive oil has become differentiated by its bioactive composition, including its healthful natural phenolic compounds, as well as its flavor, quality, and origin.
“For us,” they add, “one of the most important developments has been the emergence of high-phenolic olive oil as a distinct premium and functional category.” Clinical trials have been “providing increasingly strong evidence” that olive oil phenols’ biological activity “may translate into measurable effects in humans,” for example for “cardiovascular and metabolic health, inflammation, and cognitive function.” This clinical research has “begun to change the way both producers and consumers perceive olive oil.” New analytical methods and research have also changed the way olive oil is produced by innovators interested in enhancing the health benefits of their products.
Positive changes are underway in the Greek olive oil sector, but more are needed
Chloe Dimitriadis, Director of Biolea Astrikas Estate, sums up views shared by many Greek olive oil professionals: she sees several encouraging Greek olive oil sector trends in the last decade, but she would like to see additional progress. “More producers are starting to change practices to be more careful about olive oil quality, more brands are entering olive oil competitions, we are starting to talk about polyphenol content and organoleptics [flavor and aroma] instead of just looking at acidity, we are seeing a slight change towards organic cultivation and sustainable agriculture, but this change is happening very slowly.”
“We also have seen more focus on agrotourism and olive oil tourism,” Dimitriadis continues, “but not enough. Restaurants are starting to add olive oil lists and branded olive oil on tables, chefs are starting to see the value of using extra virgin oil in recipes, but unfortunately” bulk olive oil still appears on many Greek restaurant tables, and virgin olive oil is not consistently used in restaurant kitchens. Like many others, Dimitriadis decries such tendencies. She asks, “if we as a culture don’t learn to respect and value olive oil as an artisanal product and package it as such, how can we expect the rest of the world to do so?”
Many significant Greek olive oil industry changes have occurred in the past decade, both good and bad. (If you missed Part 1 of this two-part series, which considered less welcome news, you can find it here.) Clearly, much more remains to be accomplished in the coming decade. The next Greek Liquid Gold article will explore the future of Greek olive oil.
Thanks to Eleftheria Germanaki for the photo of her tasting olive oil, and to Dimitris Talianis for the photo of ELIA Lesvos Confest participants on a stage.