South Australia's electricity distributor is "exasperated" by the number of farmers hitting powerlines and electricity poles while sowing crops, with 13 incidents recorded this season already.

Parts of Western Australia are being warned to brace for heavy rain and damaging winds from this evening, as two systems combine to bring a blast of wintry weather to half of the state. Already on Thursday, rain totals of up to 60 millimetres have been recorded through west-coastal and south-western parts of the state.

For as long as Sarah Armstrong can remember, rain at her family's southern New South Wales farm led to her dad picking up the phone. "It rained overnight and Dad was ringing up everyone and comparing rainfall," she said.

With the effects of last year's mouse plague still fresh, farmers and rural communities are being warned to act now to avoid a spring rodent breeding boom. Reports of high mouse numbers are increasing across the eastern states as well as a "significant outbreak" in Western Australia.

Infection numbers are high at present, so it’s important to keep up with the current status of pandemic regulations across Australia. You can access state-specific information on COVID-19 from the links below:

A statutory review of the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 (BAM Act) is being undertaken throughout 2022. The review will be conducted by an independent six-member panel which was appointed in February.

The BAM Act is the regulatory framework for Western Australia’s plant and animal pest and disease biosecurity, the use of agricultural and veterinary chemicals, and ensuring safe and quality agricultural products.

Find out more here.

A group of 17 international delegates has arrived in regional WA for Australia's first premium food and drink trade mission since the pandemic closed borders in March 2020.

Got something to sell? Or want to buy? Go direct to your target market – olive growers and producers 

If you’ve got something industry-related to sell, you can reach your target market directly with Olivebiz Classifieds. Our online Classifieds service is an easy and inexpensive solution to advertising your unwanted equipment. And if there’s something you’re looking for, it’s the ideal way to get the message out loud and clear to your peers and industry associates – like Anthony, who’s looking for high quality fresh or brined olives.

Olivebiz Classifieds cost just $40 for AOA members ($100 for non-members), including a text ad and link through to either your web page or images hosted on our site. And you don’t need to be a tech-head: just send us your info and we’ll post it up for you.

Olivebiz Classifieds are online now at www.olivebiz.com.au/classifieds. To arrange a listing, contact Gerri at editor@olivegrower.com.au.

More and more farmers are choosing to combine conservation with agriculture and the benefits are paying off.

Smart farming is a management concept focused on advanced technology – including big data, the cloud and the internet of things (IoT) – for tracking, monitoring, automating and analysing operations.

The Landcare Australia Smart Farming project has established pilot smart farms at Austchilli in Bundaberg, Queensland, with equipment including trunk and stem dendrometers, sap flow sensors, soil moisture sensors, weather station, remote cameras, leachate collectors and runoff flumes.

A virtual field day covering the Austchilli Smart Farm is being held from 1-3pm AEST on Thursday, 26 May. The program includes interviews with staff, a demonstration of sensor integrations and activity tracking in Control Tower and an overview of the sensor suite. The event will end with an open discussion, with questions from the audience encouraged.

Find out more and register here. 

The Spanish Association of Young Farmers and Ranchers (Asaja) has criticized the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food’s (MAPA) financial aid plan to support the development of the country’s traditional olive growers. Asaja said the funding to make the country’s traditional groves more competitive is “blurred and ridiculous” because it targets producer organizations and cooperatives rather than growers.

In the wake of the cooking oils crisis caused by the war in Ukraine, a campaign has been launched in Crete for the broad use of Cretan olive oil in restaurants and other foodservice establishments on the island.

The funds will come from a combination of national and European schemes to help improve infrastructure, technology and knowledge.

We’re now well into 2022, and Friday Olive Extracts (FOE) continues to bring all the latest industry news and events to your Inbox every week. THE place to share olive industry news, event details and reminders, our industry e-newsletter keeps growing in popularity and we now have nearly 4000 subscribers across the globe. If you’re not one of them, you can sign up here.

And please remember that FOE is YOUR e-newsletter, so we’re keen to receive your news and help spread the word. Just email your information to Editor Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au - it’s free, and the best way to reach your fellow industry members!

The purpose of the new law is to promote local food production, MedDiet education, wine and oleotourism, public health and environmental protection strategies.

Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti brought four Italian monovarietals to the ISS, which will be used for a series of experiments and food preparation.

The Andalusian regional government has reported olive moth infestation levels of approximately half those recorded in the same period of last year.

The lamp was discovered by chance and in very good condition in an archeological excavation area at Mount Gerizim, near Nablus.

European officials will work with the sector to promote extra virgin olive oil culture and health benefits ahead of the potential introduction of Nutr-Score.

Olive Cultivar Research Webinar

Olives SA/WEA seminar, Tasting and appreciating EVOO – Adelaide

Entries open, 2022 Australian International Olive awards

Hort Connections 2022 – Brisbane

Entries open, 2022 Hunter Olive Show – Hunter Valley, NSW

Entries open, WA Olive Awards

Entries close, 2022 Australian International Olive awards

Entries close, 2022 Hunter Olive Show – Hunter Valley, NSW

Entries close, WA Olive Awards

Medals announced, 2022 Australian International Olive awards

Awards presentation, 2022 Hunter Olive Show – Hunter Valley, NSW

Olives NZ Conference and Awards Dinner – Wellington, NZ

Field tour, 2022 AOA National Olive Conference & Exhibition – Devonport, Tasmania

Awards Dinner, 2022 Australian International Olive awards

2022 AOA National Olive Conference & Exhibition – Devonport, Tasmania

Awards Night, WA Olive Awards

SA Olive Festival - Nangkita Olives, Fleurieu Peninsula

To include your event, or update your existing event details, email FOE editor Gerri Nelligan at editor@olivegrower.com.au

Friday Olive Extracts Editorial editor@olivegrower.com.au

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