The Thirty Years of Olive War is over

A decision has been issued by the Council of Europe that will put an end to the “battle for Kalamon olives” and normalize the Greek export market.

The “dispute” was started about thirty years ago by Kalamata producers of table olives of the Kalamon variety, since the 1996 decision by the European Commission to approve the name “branded product” (S.O.P.) created a gap between Messinian products and other regions producing this variety of olives.

Kalamon table olives are a variety, not a designation of origin. And now, almost 30 years later, by the corresponding decision of the State Council allowed parallel distribution of the approved brand name (P.O.N) “ΚΑΛΑΜΑΤΑ/ KALAMATA” (average 85,000 tons per year) and PDO “ELIA KALAMATAS” (average 277 tons per year).

This event is important because, according to the Panhellenic Union of Table Olive Processors and Exporters (PEMETE), the solution normalizes the export market for the product and ensures its smooth absorption by producers of this variety throughout the country.

It is worth noting that export of Kalamon table olives is 250 million euros, while an explosion in production with a volume of more than 120 thousand tons of finished products is predicted in the next decade. According to the National Interprofessional Organization of Table Olives, the annual production of the Kalamon olive variety (table, for human consumption) amounts to a total of 101,000 tons.

45% of production comes from Aetoloakarnania (45,000 tons), 28% from Laconia, 18% from Phthiotis, 2% from Messenia and about 7% is “shared” between other regions. Annual domestic consumption the product is estimated at 10,000 tons, and about 73,000 tons are sent to international markets. It is estimated that approximately 18,000 tons are lost during processing.

“Today is a historic day for the table olive sector, as it is a day of vindication for thousands of Greek olive producers and the country’s processing, standardization and export industries,” PEMETE comments in a statement.

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