According to UF/IFAS-led research, buying extra virgin olive oil from olives grown in Florida might soon become a reality.
Jennifer Gillett-Kaufman, a UF/IFAS entomology professor is leading a study of olive production in Florida. The research by UF/IFAS faculty includes a workshop held last year with olive experts from California. Gillett-Kaufman and a team of scientists have access to five planted olive groves established by the Florida Olive Council at five UF/IFAS Research and Education Centers where they are exploring different varieties.
Gillett-Kaufman is researching pests and looking for insect vectored diseases, while Mack Thetford, of the West Florida REC in Jay, Florida, explores the horticulture data to grow and harvest olives. The team is working with researchers in Georgia and Texas, and the USDA to determine if olives will be a viable crop in Florida.
In 1995, Americans consumed 22 million gallons of olive oil; currently we consume approximately 80 million gallons of olive oil and that number is growing, Gillett-Kaufman said. “There is a huge increase and it’s just going up because of the health benefits,” she said.
Richard Williams, a Volusia County-based grower, has 20 acres of olives. He is currently leading a local endeavor dubbed Florida Olive Systems Inc. Williams’ in-laws (the Ford/Veech family) have been growing citrus in Florida for decades. They are funding the exploratory project.
“This is so new that we are learning every day,” said Williams. “But it’s a new opportunity to reinvent ourselves after catastrophic losses to citrus greening.”
After conducting his own research on the viability of growing olives in Florida, Williams visited Texas, Georgia and California, which have a history of growing high-density olives. Also, he and other growers invited experts from Italy, Spain, and Greece to visit Florida and discuss the olive industry.
In 2012, Williams planted 20 acres of Arbequina, Arbosana, and Koroneiki varieties of olives. He also has 16 varieties of olive trees under observation, planted in approximately 6,000 containers. Williams has additional varieties coming in to evaluate this spring.
Florida farmers formed the Florida Olive Council 10 years ago to promote olive crops in the state. Currently, there are 300 acres of olive trees in the state managed by approximately 50 growers.
So far, the oil that Williams and other farmers have produced have garnered excitement. “The extra virgin olive oil that we produce has been independently tested and shown to contain some exciting anti-inflammatory properties that are apparently not found in all olive oils sold,” he said. “We want to responsibly study this, let people come in and see what we are doing. We need more people to plant responsibly, put out test groves and use the University of Florida to provide the science and other assistance.”