October the 21st, 2025 | Finally, here’s the most eagerly awaited moment of the year for oil lovers!
While theharvest and production of the new 2025 vintage of extra virgin olive oil is in progress, you have already asked us so many questions about the quality and quantity of this year’s olive oil.
We collected some of your questions to answer them in this article…
How are the olives?
After a tough battle, the olives are healthy… but not a lot in terms of quantity.
In fact, in 2025, the olive trees were not as generous as last year (it is the famous “off year”), but 2025 will be remembered mainly for another reason.
The season had its excesses and peaks of rain, heat and cold, but it never turned out to be a season that we would describe as problematic, until the dreaded Olive Fly arrived.
We fought a real battle against the fly and, with commitment and determination, we managed to minimise the damage.
Let’s take a closer look in the next few questions…
What is the “off year”?
It is not a myth, the famous ‘off year’ does exist: olive trees produce consistent quantities one year and very poor quantities the next year.
With the good production of 2024, this year we should not expect our olive trees to be particularly generous.
There are many variables that determine olive production, such as climate, variety and agronomic techniques. Among the latter, pruning has a major impact: pruned olive trees produce fewer olives.
The objection may seem obvious, but not pruning is not a good solution either. In fact, an olive tree that is not pruned carefully and at least every two years, will gradually become less productive and difficult to cultivate.
So you were attacked by the fly too?
Yes, but with a lot of determination and hard work, we managed to avoid an attack that would have been so tragic that it would have completely jeopardised the harvest.
The battle began with frequent monitoring of the olive groves to check:
- the flight of the adult, using traps
- egg laying, by sampling olives
When flight activity was at its peak, we began monitoring egg laying by assessing the quantity of olives where the fly had already laid eggs. At the appropriate time, we intervened with a treatment based on kaolin and Bordeaux mixture.
Intervening at the right time, especially when farming organically, means carrying out an intervention that is as effective as it is low-impact on the environment!
But how does this type of treatment work?
Let’s start from the assumption that the fly is not exactly a champion of intellect…
Kaolin, being powedered white clay, whitens the olive: this way, the fly no longer recognises it!
And if any fly, by chance or cunning, still manage to spot the olive, they are in for a nasty surprise: kaolin creates a rough layer on the olive that flies do not like.
In the 2025 extra virgin olive oil production campaign, characterised by such a significant attack by the olive fly, Bordeaux mixture was an important ally of kaolin: once the fly ingests the mixture, it can no longer produce eggs, thus further limiting the proliferation of the fly.
Does it sound too simple?
It isn’t! Because a treatment of this type carried out at the wrong time is a waste of time, energy and money, as well as a guarantee of damaged olives, resulting in poor quality olive oil…
Attention and timeliness in managing a fly attack and field operations, such as pruning, are two great examples that demonstrate the difference between making olive oil with all the dedication that the olive tree, the landscape, nature and our table require, or not.
Does this treatment leave residues in the oil?
No residues from these treatments are found on the olives and olive oil as they do not penetrate the olive and are therefore completely washed away by rain or during the milling process when the olives are washed!
In conclusion…
Human labour is essential to ensure good, healthy olive oil production, especially in vintages such as 2025.
While our actions are crucial to the success of production, they are equally crucial to the environmental impact of our work. We olive growers – and farmers in general – can and must commit ourselves to reducing this impact as much as possible: an extra virgin olive oil produced with great attention to sustainability has enormous added value in terms of reduced environmental impact and authenticity of the final product, qualities that add to the important nutritional properties of high-quality extra virgin olive oil.
Put us to the test and taste the fruits of our labour: we ship worldwide and even to your home from HERE!
