Jan 14, 2021

Olive grower’s resolution: Convert 320K trees to organic

California Olive Ranch, a leading domestic grower of olives for extra virgin olive oil, rang in the new year by announcing new environmental sustainability initiatives.

The sustainability efforts include a commitment to regenerative agriculture and converting over 320,000 olive trees to organic production, according to a news release from the company. The business move would make California Olive Ranch one of the largest producers of certified organic 100% California extra virgin olive oil.

“We are committed to helping grow the California olive oil industry and are making investments across our organization to understand and apply the latest thinking in environmental sustainability to our farming practices,” Michael Fox, CEO of California Olive Ranch, said in a news release. “We are also expanding our investments in regenerative agriculture to actively improve the condition of our natural resources, not just sustaining them.”

California Olive Ranch has stepped up its commitment to regenerative agriculture practices to further aid in carbon sequestration and soil health across all their acres, according to the release. After successful trials, the company has rolled out regenerative soil practices like planting a diverse cover crop, no to minimal tilling, reusing tree trimmings and olive pomace in its compost, minimal mowing and inoculating soil with a proprietary microbe “compost tea” to increase soil life and health, and reducing/eliminating reliance on synthetic fertilizers. The company is partnering with leading California universities and state resource centers to further study and analyze the positive impact these practices will have on soil health and the environment.

California Olive Ranch recently completed the planting of over two million olive trees in California with family-owned farms across the state. The company said in the news release, not only does it increase their production, research from the International Olive Council also indicates that olive trees could have a meaningful impact on sequestering carbon from the air. California Olive Ranch has initiated its own research to better understand the positive benefits of the company’s modern farming and harvesting techniques in calculating its impact on California’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Above, in addition to rolling out new commitments to sustainable growing, the California Olive Ranch rolled out new labeling for its products. Photos: California Olive Ranch