World famous Anatolian olive and olive oil have their great stories. Their taste and nutritious features make them special on tables. They have millions of addicts all over the world. Let’s have a closer look at them:
Regions
In the Aegean Region, 80% of the olive production is processed for oil and 20% for edible. The marketing percentage of these products is approximately 78 percent. The remaining portion is allocated for domestic consumption.
However, the case is to the contrary in the Marmara region, which is an area of transition between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean: 90% for edible and 10% for oil. While 40 percent of the total edible olive production of Turkey is achieved in this region, cured black olive is emphasized in the processing of edible olive.
In the Mediterranean region, olive growing is carried out in the zone between the Taurus Mountains and the coast up to an altitude of 850 meters. Of the olive production in which Hatay (Antakya), Icel, Adana and Antalya take the lead, 68% is evaluated for oil extraction and 32% for table. Plantation of saplings of the cold-resistant Ayvalik variety with a high “want of cooling” is also spreading at villages at higher altitudes. Due to the fact that edible olive growing particularly brings more revenue, recently… As the Gemlik variety is a “coastal variety”, it is hardly resistant to cold.
Therefore, while the saplings of Gemlik variety are planted, saplings of Ayvalik variety are also planted in between for their “pollens”. Pollens of the Ayvalik variety pollinate the blossoms of the Gemlik variety, thus making its fruits more resistant to cold.
In the Southeastern Anatolia region, olive growing is carried out in those parts of Gaziantep, Kilis, Sanliurfa, Kahramanmaras and Mardin which are under the effect of the Mediterranean climate. Of the olive production in the region, 86% is for oil extraction and 14% for table. Within the scope of olive growing improvement works, Ayvalik and Gemlik varieties have just started to be distributed to growers from the regional nurseries. Particularly in Adiyaman and Kilis, it is observed that the number of saplings planted in the recent years has exceeded the number of reproductive trees.
In the Black Sea region, edible olives are grown usually for self-consumption purposes in the limited coastal strip and in the secluded river valleys (Artvin) with the Mediterranean microclimates which are protected against the northerly winds in
Distribution of olive varieties by regions is as follows:
Aegean
Ayvalık (Edremit, Ayvalık, Gömeç, Burhaniye), Memecik (Aydın and Muğla), Domat (Akhisar), Uslu (Akhisar, Kemalpaşa, Yatağan), Erkence (İzmir), Çakır (İzmir), İzmir edible olive, Çekişte (Ödemiş, Torbalı, Nazilli), Çilli (Kemalpaşa), Kiraz (Akhisar), Memecik (Muğla, İzmir, Aydın, Manisa, Denizli as well as Antalya, Sinop, Kastamonu – also called Yağlık and available in Kahramanmaraş), Memeli (Menemen, Turgutlu) are the most widespread varieties. Such rare varieties as Akzeytin (İzmir Çekişte), Aşı Yeli, Dilmit, Eşek Olive (Girit Ulağı), Hurma Karaca (Urla), Hurma Karaca (Aydın), Kara Yaprak, Taşarası (Bozdoğan), Elma, Kuru Gülümbe, Karşıyaka Güzeli, Yerli Yağlık (Milas) are also seen.
Marmara
Gemlik or Tirilye variety is the most widespread one. Of the regional olive groves, 75-80% consists of this variety (Gemlik, Erdek, Mudanya, Edincik, Tirilye), Edincik Su (Bursa, Yalova, Kocaeli), Beyaz Yağlık, Eşek Zeytini, Şam ve Siyah Salamuralık.
Mediterranean
Halhalı (Mardin, Hatay, Gaziantep, Adana), Sarı Haşebi, Karamani, Saurani (Hatay, Altınözü), Tavşan Yüreği (Muğla, Antalya), Büyük Topak Ulak (İçel, Tarsus), Küçük Topak Ulak, Girit Ulak (İçel, Tarsus), Sarı Ulak (İçel, Adana, Kozan), Sayfi, etc. as well as Gemlik and Ayvalık varieties have just started to be commonly planted in the region.
Southeastern Anatolia
Eğriburun (Nizip, Halfeti), Kalembezi (Kilis, Nizip), Küqan Çelebi (Gaziantep), Kilis, Kahramanmaraş, Şanlıurfa, Mardin), Nizip Yağlık, Yağ Çelebi (Nizip, Kilis).
Beside such varieties, Belluti, Halhalı Çelebi, Yağlık Çelebi, Yağlık Sarı, Yuvarlak Çelebi, Yuvarlak Halhalı, Yün Çelebi and Boncuk.
Black Sea
Otur, Sati, Buttko Yağlık, Görvele, (Artvin), Samsun Yerli (Samsun, Sinop, Zonguldak), Pastos (Trabzon, Zonguldak), İstrangili, Marantelli, Trabzon Yağlık (Trabzon), Zonguldak yerli yuvarlak, Kastamonu Yağlık.
Organic olive and olive oil from Anatolia
In recent years, interest in organic crops has been gradually increasing due to global warming and health reasons. Growing the olive trees using organic fertilisers by not with chemical fertilisers further enhances the quality of the olive and olive oil products. Thus, it may be insured to atract more demand for its taste and its high nutritional value in both the domestic and international markets. The organic of “bio” olive growing efforts which the Agricultural Combat Institution at Bornova, Izmir has started in Kemalpasa speed up the efforts to that effect.
Organic agriculture activities started in our country for exports in accordance with the requirements of the exporters in a different manner than the developments in Europe in 1986. The production and exports which were performed in compliance with the relevant legislation of the importing countries at the outset continued in compliance with the Directives of the European Community from 1991 onwards. Later, the issues which any countries to export organic products to the European Community must comply with were stipulated in deail in the supplement no. 94/92 published on January 14, 1992 of the Directive 2092/91 and it was made mandatory that countries would put into practice their own legislation and file an application with the European Community in a folder which contain various technical and administrative issues including such legislation.
In order to accommodate to such developments in the European Community, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs started the works to prepare regulations in cooperation with various institutions and organisations and the “Regulation Concerning the Production of Vegetal and Animal products by Organic Methods” became effective upon publication in the Official Gazette no. 22145 of December 24, 1994.
The Regulations has ben issued to acomplish ecological (organic) agriculture which is an alternative production system and is required so that the products of those producers who are engaged in organic agriculture in Turkey. Products which are prduced either for exports or for domestic consumption are organically evaluated in compliance with the rules as stipulated by the regulations in question. The regulations were not insufficient in consideration of the year when it was issued, but require some adaptation to the Organic Agriculture Directive of the European Community due to the fact that the products are exported to Europe in the present day. The Ministry is now carrying out an activity together with the governmental and private organisations which are members to the Organic Agriculture Committee and National Steering in the matter.
The rules which must be complied with at the production, processing, labelling, storage and marketing stages of organic products are stipulated in Regulations which are comprised of 5 chapters and 40 articles. The regulations further contain a schedule.
Modifications were later made in some of the articles of the said regulations in order to overcome any hitches encountered in practice, and any sanctions which would be applied against any errors and mistakes which wouldl be made during the agricultural activities were included into the regulations as well. The revised text was published in the Official Gazette no. 22328 of June 29, 1995 and became effective.
Types of Olive Oil ad Technical Descriptions:
Olive oil is divided into three categories depending on the modes of acquisition and the methods employed in production:
1- Natural olive oil,
2- Refined olive oil,
3- Pure olive oil.
Please find the description of olive oil by categories and types as given in National Food Codex.
1- Natural olive oil:
It is an oil which is produced from the fruits of the olive tree at a temperature which shall not cause any chages in their natural properties by the application of various mechanical or physical processes and whch may be consumed as foodstuff in a natural state. Virgin olive oil is divided into three types by the percentage of free fatty acids and the sensual, physical and chemical properties:
a) Natural virgin olive oil: It is the oil whose free fatty acidity is not more than 0,8 g per 100 g in oleic acid.
b) Natural primary olive oil: It is the oil whose free fatty acidity is more than 0,8 g but less than 2,0 g per 100 g in oleic acid.
c) Natural secondary olive oil: It is the oil whose free fatty acidity is more than 2,0 g but less than 3,3 g per 100 g in oleic acid.
2- Refined olive oil:
It is the oil which is obtained by refining the crude olive oil which may not be consumed as foodstuff in its natural state by such methods which shall not cause any changes in its natural triglyceride composition and which does not contain any refinement residues and whose free fatty acidity is not more than 0,3 g per 100 g in oleic acid.
3- Pure olive oil:
It is the oil which is made from a mixture of natural olive oil and refined olive oil and whose properties vary between the natural olive oil and refined olive oil and whose free fatty acidity is not more than 1 g per 100 g in oleic acid.
