New labels on Greek Olives and Olive Oil set to distinguish Greece’s products overseas

According to leading olive oil publication Olive Oil Times, companies in Greece that produce table olives and olive oil have started to display a “Greek Mark”resembling the Greek flag in the shape of a love heart, which is part of a project that aims to help consumers easily identify various Greek products in foreign markets.

Olive Oil Times reports the legislation that enabled the mark for Greek products, including that of edible olives and olive oil became effective last August and contains certain prerequisites the products must fulfill, initially requiring that a vertically integrated production process exists totally in Greece.

For olive oil, it means that all the stages of the production must take place within the country: growing the fruit, processing, and packaging and exporting the final product.

Beyond certifying the origin of the products, it is hoped the mark will provide an added value for the Greek olive industry.

The Greek Mark is seen as another tool to fight olive oil falsification and adulteration and help limit the quantities of olive oil being sold in bulk in the country and abroad.

Vassilis Kokkalis, the deputy minister of agriculture, stated that the safe road for Greek agricultural products in a highly competitive global market is to be clearly recognised worldwide by using the symbol. He sent an open invitation to companies in the olive oil industry to fulfill the requirements and earn the mark.

Seven olive and olive oil companies throughout Greece have already started displaying the label, including Terra Creta.

Emmanouil Karpadakis of Terra Creta, one of the larger producers of Crete, expects the Greek Mark to strengthen their branding abroad. “It is something that will help us communicate the quality of our products in international markets,” he told Olive Oil Times.

“It will help consumers easily discern Greek quality olive oil on the supermarket shelves from mixtures of olive oil from other countries and of ambiguous quality,” he continued. “We currently send our products to 42 markets all over the world, but we expect that the mark will draw more attention in European countries and in the U.S. than in China or African markets.”

Karpadakis said that more Greek companies should opt for the mark to help them stand out from the competition, provided that their products match the quality the mark proclaims to deliver.

Source: Olive Oil Times