Olives

Introduction

  • Olive products are olive oil and table olives.
  • Harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand. The latter yields a better product but is more labour intensive. Olive farming is a long-term investment, with a return on investment only showing four to five years after planting.
 

International business environment

  • The EU is the world’s largest olive oil producer, responsible for approximately 60 percent of the world production. The largest producer by far is Spain (45% of the global market). Other major producers are Italy, Greece, and Portugal (USDA, 2026).

Find information at:

South Africa: imports and exports

  • There is still room in production for import substitution.
  • South Africa produces about 1.5 to 2.0 million litres of olive oil, most of which is extra virgin olive oil. Imports are Between five to six million litres of olive oil.
  • In 2025 South Africa imported ZAR24.9 million worth of olive oil, and exported ZAR11.6 million.
  • Italy was the top origin of imports (ZAR9.3 million), but Spain, Greece and Portugal, among others also supplied olive oil.
  • South Africa’s olive oil exports went to Somalia (ZAR6.12 million) and Lesotho, among others..
Source: www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/sa-olive-oil-industry-has-strong-prospects-says-land-bank-analyst-66b12462-f7c7-4b27-ac0a-ae4321fe1c07 and https://oec.world/en/profile/bilateral-product/olive-oil/reporter/zaf

Local business environment

  • Olives have high growth potential and create jobs. For these reasons, this can be viewed as an important crop for South Africa.
  • The climate in the Western Cape is ideal for growing olives, especially around towns like Paarl, Robertson and Montagu, and 95% of the country’s olive production happens in the Western Cape (SA Olive, 2022). Olives can also be produced in certain summer rainfall areas as happens in Hartswater in the Northern Cape, and even in the Eastern Free State (refer to Serrado Olive Estate under the “Companies involved” sub-heading)!
  • The majority of South African olive farms are small: almost half of the 200 registered olive growers are farms of less than 5 ha.
  • Over the past 10 years, the land under olive cultivation has doubled in size from 1800 hectares to nearly 3700.
  • In terms of table olives, around 1400 tonnes of olives are produced, and about the same volumes are imported each year.
  • In 2020, an estimated 2 400 hectares were dedicated to olive oil in South Africa, representing a 70% increase since 2012. Similarly, dual table and oil hectares have grown by 52% in South Africa over the same period.
  • Around 1.5-2.0 million litres of local olive oil are produced each year, and a further 5-6 million litres of olive oil are estimated to be imported annually. While local production is entirely Extra Virgin, the same cannot be said for imported olive oils. Imported olive oil is subsidised and cheaper, one of the impediments to creating further employment in this sector. Another challenge is that olive products are regarded as luxury items (Mathe, 2020).
  • One answer to the flood of imports, often of inferior quality, is the Commitment to Compliance (CTC) Scheme, which ensures that consumers can choose “the best quality locally produced oils”.
  • Olives have high growth potential and create jobs, and can accordingly be viewed as an important crop for South Africa.
Source: www.saolive.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/SA-Olive-Factsheet.pdf and previous notes which appeared in earlier editions of the Agri Handbook.

For the newcomer

Find grower notes on the websites of several role players e.g. www.saolive.co.za and www.drakensteinolives.co.za.

Role players

Business Listings

The following business listings are provided for informational purposes only. Agribook does not endorse or guarantee any of the listed businesses, their products, or services.

Further reference:

  • Find information on the Commitment to Compliance (CTC) seal on the SA Olive Industry Association (SA Olive) website. A levy on all table olives and olive oil is paid by producers, processors and importers.
  •  Statutory levies for the olive and other agricultural sectors are processed by the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC).
  • A list of registered olive nurseries can be found at www.saolive.co.za/registered-nurseries/

Websites and publications

  • Visit the websites of companies listed earlier on this page. Several of them include general information about olives, including the health aspects.
  • www.saolive.co.za is a vital stop for information about olives and the South African olive industry. Amongst the information are notes for growing olives and standards for nurseries. There is also information about available publications and DVDs. These include (i) Olive Production in South Africa, (ii) Olive Oil: A Field Guide, (iii) Olive Growing Manual, and (iv) Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil.
  • Available from ARC-Agricultural Engineering (ARC-AE) is the publication “Agro-processing of Olives and Legumes (green peas, green beans, cowpeas, lentils, olives, peanuts, mushrooms)”. Call 012 842 4017 or visit www.arc.agric.za.
  • Table Olive Processing Made Easy by Linda Costa and other products. Find details at https://olivesinfact.com.
  • Mueller T. 2013. Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil. New Delhi: Atlantic.
  • Costa, C. 1998. Olive Production in South Africa: A Handbook for Olive Growers. Nelspruit: ARC-Tropical and Subtropical Crops.
  • Find news and information at https://olive-central.co.za.
  • Find the history of olives and notes on the South African olive sector at www.rosannaolives.co.za.
  • The AgriSETA Assessment Guide Primary Agriculture “Monitor the establishment of a crop” includes orchard trees. Another relevant learner guides include “Harvesting agricultural crops”.
  • Find the FAO technical notes for growing olives at www.fao.org/land-water/databases-and-software/crop-information/en/
  • Find the olive tree information at https://wikifarmer.com/olive-tree-information/.

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