The olive tree produces an awesome fruit called olive from which we get olive oil. The tree has been cultivated in Greece since antiquity and blends harmoniously with the country’s landscape. The Mediterranean sun and the Aegean winds lend the fruit its unique taste. The tree has served as a source of inspiration to all Greeks! It is a symbol of peace, social and religious values, progress, affluence, wisdom and fame. It has fed, bread and given shed to countless Greek generations and earned its place in Greek culture.
Greece is the world’s third largest producer of edible olives and olive oil. Spread around the country are 120 million olive trees and 450,000 families depend on olive oil production as a primary or secondary source of income.
Precious olive oil
The production of olive oil dates back 4,000 years. Olive keeping in Greece is mainly a family business and each tree is personally taken care of with tenderness. The unique flavour of Greek olive oil is largely used in all kinds of local recipes. Even though 65% of Greece’s olive oil production is limited to the Peloponnese and Crete, the trees are scattered all over country and produce 350,000 tons of this product annually.
Greek olive oil products are considered top quality worldwide. They are cultivated in the country’s ideal climate and soil varieties. An 80% of Greece’s olive oil is extra virgin, which is the top-ranked classification category in the world. Greece ranks first place in exports of virgin olive oil as it sends abroad to Italy and Spain every year 150-200 thousand tons.
Greeks are the Champions
Every Greek consumes more than 15 kilos of olive oil per year. Greece ranks first in olive oil consumption per person internationally. Biological and Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) olive oils are becoming a trend in the internal market, demonstrating a growth of more than 30% annually.
Studies have shown that olive oil is the healthiest product among vegetable oils. It is loaded with antioxidants and protects from various diseases; therefore essential for a balanced diet!
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