OLIVE oil producers in southern Greece are to take on their bigger Italian and Spanish rivals with a drive to market organic olive oil in Europe.

The European Union will help to fund part of the campaign to convince consumers that Greek olive oil is healthier and of better quality than oil produced elsewhere in the Mediterranean.

Production companies around Sparta and Kalamata in the southern Peloponnese, Greece’s traditional “olive oil country”, say that they have been habitually short-changed in Europe’s markets. They sell about 35 per cent of Greece’s total olive oil output, or 25,000 tonnes a year, in bulk to Italy, where it is blended with local oil and labelled as “Italian” for export.

“We have not yet taken advantage of opportunities to market our olive oil,” said Nikos Psyllakis, president of Greece’s Organic Farming Association, at an olive oil convention near Sparta last week.

“Olive oil is the only national export commodity that could survive without government or EU subsidies,” said Dimitris Pavlis, of the country’s Development Ministry.

Greek olive growers tend some 14 million trees — some of which are reputed to be more than 800 years old. They produce 370,000 tonnes of olives a year, the third-biggest output in Europe after Spain and Italy. Most Greek olives are the popular Kalamatas.

Drought in Spain has cut its production and driven up the price of olives and olive oil. The EU has turned to Greece to fill the gap. It has agreed to meet 30 per cent of promotional costs for organic brands such as Mani, which is produced by Blauel, an Austrian-run oil press near Kalamata.

“We saw most of the good quality oil being sent to Italy in large containers, so we sat down and began filling individual bottles with selected oil by hand,” said Fritz Blauel, Blauel’s owner and chief executive. “Now more than 500 farms have been converted to organic farming.”

Next year will be a critical test for Greek olive oil, as local producers lose some government subsidies. National production of olive oil could fall by up to one third, according to government officials.

“The Government may have to consider non-interest loans to olive growers to keep up their interest in organic farming,” said Vasilis Zambounis, an economist. “Too many locals are looking for fast money in the tourism sector rather than working to develop a healthy olive farming industry.”

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