Olives and spreads

The story of Olive and its Oil is lost in the depths of centuries. Olive oil or the "golden liquid", according to Homer, in antiquity was not just a food, but a symbol of health and strength, a medicine, as well as a source of magic and wonder. From antiquity to the present, the concepts of "mediterranean" and "olive" are almost identical. According to Mediterranean historian F. Braudel, "The Mediterranean begins where the first olive trees grow and ends where the first palm-tree forests on the African continent begin."

The Greeks were the first to cultivate olives in the European area of ​​the Mediterranean. Olives companion the Greeks both in times of prosperity and in times of deprivation. Olive, its oil and its branches, were used commercially, nourished and raised healthy many generations, offered longevity and protection from various diseases. The olive tree for the Greeks is a blessed tree, a precious gift of nature that has been linked to the history and culture of Greece. The olive fruit has been sacred since ancient times. Olive oil is now a key component of the internationally recognized Mediterranean diet and has been scientifically proven to have antioxidant, cardioprotective and anti-inflammatory action.

Odysseas Elytis, the famous Greek poet who won the Nobel Prize in Literature (1979) said that "If you disconnect Greece, in the end you will see an olive tree, a vineyard and a boat. Which means: with so many more you make it again".

The olive tree has various ways of getting names and designations: the first is geographical, the second depends on the botanical variety of the tree, and the third has to do with cultivation. For example, Amphissas, Canned (Olea Europea var. Rotunda), or Kalamon (the word "Kalamon" designates both the place and the variety Olea Europea var. Ceraticarpa), with vinegar. Greek land and production has a rich tradition of table olives, hence the many different varieties and so many choices.