Lockdown learning; Goat weeding; Italy’s burning olive trees

06 August 2021

Brought to you by Australian & New Zealand Olivegrower & Processor www.olivebiz.com.au

Today's Top Story

Newcastle and Hunter region expecting long queues at testing clinics on first day of lockdown

Police have urged residents to be patient due to a surge in demand for COVID-19 testing after the Newcastle and Hunter region entered a snap lockdown on Thursday evening. More exposure sites are expected to be revealed today after five coronavirus cases were reported yesterday.

To everyone in lockdown at present, be patient, hang in there and stay safe. And if restrictions mean you can’t get to and/or out in your grove to work, remember there’s a wealth of great industry resources available to watch and learn from on the OliveBiz website here www.olivebiz.com.au.

Australia

Invasive species have cost Australia $390 billion in the past 60 years, study shows

Feral cats are a huge threat to Australian wildlife, and it turns out they are costing us a lot too. (Supplied: Flinders University)

They trample fragile environments and devastate crops, and now we can put a figure on how much damage invasive species like feral cats and weedy plants are doing to Australia's bottom line.

Transplant gives NSW shearer Nigel Downey a permanent change of heart

Nigel Downey is on the road to full health after finally receiving his heart transplant. (Supplied: Frost Hollow Photographics)

Nigel Downey was wrangling a sheep in a shearing shed in 2017 when his life changed forever — not that he realised it at the time. At just 43, the fit and strong shearer from Delungra, in northern New South Wales, had no idea his heart was about to fail him.

The message is a good one: don’t ‘be tough’ and ignore health warning signs.

Have you submitted your entries for the 2021 Australian International Olive Awards?

If you haven’t done it already, it’s time to jump online, fill out the forms and package those bottles, with entry now open for the 2021 Australian International Olive Awards (AIOA).

Following the success of the 2020 format, the 2021 event once again involves both national and international judging panels across the globe.

Benefits of entering include:

Each entry is assessed and awarded on its own merit
All entrants receive comprehensive judging feedback
Successful judging provides eligibility for OliveCare® certification
Unprecedented opportunity for international recognition of winning products and producers
The 2021 Results Book is sent out to all entrants, providing an invaluable marketing tool for all medal and award winners.

Key dates

Entries now open

Entries close 3 September

Medal winners announced 4 October 2021 via email

Major award winners Announced at 2021 AIOA Gala Presentation on 15 October in Devonport.

*Due to the ongoing COVID19 situation and the uncertainty regarding postage delivery times, entrants are urged to send oils as soon as they are ready. Australia Post are an essential service so will continue to deliver during lockdowns, as are couriers, who will pick up from your porch for contactless delivery.

Find out more and enter here.

Goats 'get the job done' as Gold Coast mowing business inundated with enquiries

Alli Gleeson and Michael McConnell have a herd of 16 goats for hire, but there is a waiting list. (ABC Gold Coast: Tom Forbes)

A Gold Coast hinterland couple have been inundated with requests after offering their goat herd as an eco-friendly alternative to clearing paddocks and trimming lawns.

If you’re looking for an alternative to chemical weed control in the grove …

COVID restrictions: stay informed

The growing infection rate across the country reminds us all that it’s important to keep up with the changing status of pandemic regulations across the board. You can access state-specific information on COVID-19 from the links below:

Vic- https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/
ACT - https://www.covid19.act.gov.au
New South Wales - https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19
Queensland - https://www.covid19.qld.gov.au/
South Australia - https://www.covid-19.sa.gov.au/
Tasmania - https://coronavirus.tas.gov.au/
Western Australia - https://www.wa.gov.au/government/covid-19-coronavirus

Despite Victorian lockdown ending, border farmers concerned as produce goes to waste

Australia's agricultural industry has been largely unscathed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but as Victoria sees the tail end of another lockdown and New South Wales faces indefinite restrictions, small-scale farmers on the border are uncertain about their future.

While your products may not be ‘going to waste’ no doubt retail and hospitality shutdowns are impacting many olive producers too. Hope you’re all finding a way through …

Australian Food Pact - ways of tackling food waste

Stop Food Waste Australia will launch the Australian Food Pact at Parliament House in Canberra on 25 August 2021. This voluntary agreement program aims to halve food waste in Australia by 2030.

Find out more here.

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 excess product or equipment - like Mary, who’s selling handmade olive tapenade to extend your product range. 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 – the most likely to have what you need.

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.

Opportunities

Still time to apply for a Nuffield Scholarship

Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarships are a unique way for primary producers to participate in a life-changing experience, travel overseas and study an agricultural topic of choice.

The Farm Biosecurity Program, run by Plant Health Australia and Animal Health Australia, is supporting a scholarship for a primary producer to study a topic relevant to on-farm biosecurity.

Each scholarship is valued at $30,000. Applications close on 6 August 2021, so there's still time to apply.

Find out more and apply here.

Events

Entries open for Hunter Olive Show

Yes, the 2021 Hunter Olive Show is happening! The organising committee is determined not to let the ongoing pandemic postpone another edition, so they’re forging ahead (with COVID-safe arrangements and fall-back plans in place).

Entries are now open for the show, which provides judging and valuable feedback on olive oil, table olive and other olive products including tapenades and soaps.

Key dates:

Closing date for entries: Friday, 3 September 2021

Show judging: Saturday, 25 September 2021

Awards presentation: Thursday, 7 October 2021

More information and enter here.

Export Pricing Tool Webinar

The keen interest in Australian food and beverages from export markets presents exciting sales opportunities. The key is to ensure that your market entry is commercially viable for the long term, and this means getting your export pricing right.

Presented by the South Australia Food and Beverage Export Hub, this webinar will help you learn how to do that and ensure your business's long-term economic viability.

Details: Thursday, 26 Aug 2021, 10am-11am ACST – free. More information and register here.

OLIVE GROVE FOR LEASE

403 Kochs Road, The Gap, Frances SA

60,0000 olive trees, made up of:

Barnea - 30,895; Frantoio - 12,098; Pendolino – 4970; Picual – 3511; Koroneiki – 2820; Coratina – 2507; Arbequina – 2112; Picholine – 1200.

The olive grove is 19 years old and has been well maintained.

For terms and conditions and further information please contact Ben on 0422850699 or Greg on 0407599409, or email newmed.olives@gmail.com

NEW MEDITERRANEAN Pty Ltd - 75 Agincourt Road, Marsfield NSW 2122

New Zealand

2021 NZ EVOO Awards judging panel announced

The 2021 NZ EVOO Awards judging panel has been announced, as follows:

Head Judge - Dr Soumi Paul Mukhopadhyay, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries

Abhijit Paul, NSW DPI Olive Oil Sensory Panel

Charlotte Connoley, Auckland

Peter Coubrough, Frog’s End, Nelson

Raffaela Delmonte, Aldente, Auckland

Hilary Fenemor, Mt Heslington Olives, Nelson

Reserve Judge – Georges Feghali

Awards information packs with entry forms will be emailed to all members in August, and advance information is now available on the ONZ website here.

Entries open soon

2021 key dates are:

16 August - entries open

10 September - entries close

9 October - Awards Dinner, Rydges Wellington Airport Hotel

International

Italian producers unlikely to get dimethoate extension ahead of harvest

With few viable alternatives, farmers will have to find new ways to cope with the olive fruity fly this year.

Burning olive trees becomes new reality in southern Italy

The remains of an olive tree near Trepuzzi burnt to the ground in one of numerous wild fires ravaging Salento. Arsonists are believed to be behind many of the fires striking Xylella-infected trees in southern Italy. (Courthouse News photo/Cain Burdeau)

For miles and miles, the olive groves of Italy's Salento region are eerily void of any green or life – they are inert places where the olive harvest has been killed by a dangerous plant illness. Now arsonists are setting fire to the region's dead trees.

This is a heartbreaking story – and another reminder of the crucial importance of best practice biosecurity in our groves.

Just when olive oil tourism was trending in Turkey, the pandemic hit

Photo: Duygu Ozerso

The Covid-19 pandemic has decimated Turkey’s fledgling olive oil tourism industry. However, producers believe agritourism is the future of the sector.

Turkey announces plan to advance sustainable agriculture

The new plan aims to promote organic farming, technological innovation, recycling and renewable energies just weeks after the E.U. made a similar commitment.

Friday Olive Extracts – send us YOUR news

We’re now more than half-way through 2021, 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!

Millenary olive tree destroyed in Sardinian wildfires

On July 24, a wildfire broke out in the village of Santu Lussurgiu, in the western Sardinian province of Oristano. For three days, the flames, driven by a strong Scirocco wind (blowing from the southeast), spread through a vast zone in the central-western part of the island. The blaze reached the area of Montiferru and Planargia, enveloping 14 municipalities and damaging olive groves across two regions.