Love olives

October, 2010

From milking cows to juicing olives, Lisa Rowntree shares her journey into South Australia’s agricultural heartland and her hopes for the local olive oil industry.

When I was a little girl I often dreamed of marrying a farmer and living in the country. I had dreams of lovely red and white checked table cloths and tea parties in the sun. I would have all sorts of cute and cuddly animals on my farm and life would be idyllic. In the early 80s when I was younger I met and fell in love with my farmer (albeit on a Buck Rogers night tour of Queensland). We courted for a short while and married quickly. After we were married I moved onto the farm. OK, it was a dairy farm and not quite what I had imagined, but it was a farm. The husband handed me, his new bride, dairy work boots and pointed me in the direction of the dairy. There we stood morning and night milking cows... I realised that my dreams of farming life were sheer fantasy.

We moved into olives in 1997 and have never looked back. We initially planted 20 hectares of traditionally spaced trees and then in 2009 we planted a further 60 hectares of high density trees. I have been on the board of Olives SA since 2000 and President of the Association since 2003, I am also Vice President of the Australian Olive Association. During this time I have also raised four lovely, independent and funny children and managed to stay married to the same man.

There have been many olive industry stalwarts who’ve contributed many hours to setting the direction for the olive industry; wonderful people who share my vision of a vibrant, sustainable and profitable industry. I feel fortunate to have met these people over the years and they always inspire me to do more and work harder. Australian Extra Virgin Olive Oil is packed with properties that are good for our health and it is versatile and tasty. I’ve never met a dish that isn’t enhanced by a good splash (or drowning) in Australian EVOO. 

Right now, times are tough in the industry and it is easy to feel a little disheartened, but like all agricultural ventures there are “swings and roundabouts”. Australian producers are quality focussed and sustainability driven. Each year, after harvest, we revel in the glorious golden oil we’ve produced; the rewards of another long year. Some of us enter these oils in competitions around the country and eagerly await the results. I’ve had the pleasure of judging in the National EVOO Competition this year and also the recent Adelaide Review Olive Harvest competition. I never tire of the lovely, diverse and complex aromas and flavours of our beautiful oils and am constantly impressed with the assortment of colours and consistant quality of the entrants’ oils.

I remain committed to this industry and am confident that it has a bright future as one of Australia’s mainstream horticultural industries.

Lisa Rowntree is Vice President, Australian Olive Association, President, Olives South Australia and was winner of the 2005 RIRDC Rural Women’s Award. She was one of the expert judges for the inaugural Adelaide Review Olive Harvest that will be published in November as part of The Adelaide Review Hot 100 Wines 2010/11.