After initial optimism, mixed results for Australian producers

When Australian olive farmers started harvesting, they expected an excellent yield due to the expansion of the country’s groves and good weather. However, production was significantly down from last year. “The 2022 crop looks to be around 70 percent of last year’s crop,” Michael Southan, the chief executive of the Australian Olive Association (AOA), told Olive Oil Times. ​“The harvest this year was an ​‘off year,’ and results were mixed.” He said the AOA found some groves had their best yields while others had very little or no olives to harvest. “The groves that performed well are showing the benefits of tree regeneration and pruning,” he said, ​“while the groves that did not perform well generally suffered from insect damage or were just too wet to harvest with machines.” “Therefore, they had to handpick, resulting in much lower yields as not all trees were picked,” Southan added. ​“Overall, the year has been better than we anticipated, as the drop from last year’s record crop ...