Gleaming olive-green Italian made machines greeted me as I was introduced to the factory by Nathan Casey, Operations Manager of Hawkes Bay’s Village Press Olive Oil.
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay.
500 - 600 tonnes of olives delivered to the factory each season come from 60,000 Hawkes Bay trees and are processed according to the variety of cultivar - Barnea, Frantoio, and Manzanillo are the three I am most familiar with.
Village Press Olive Oil
Olives from Village Press
12 years ago, Wayne and Maureen Startup started making olive oil under the brand Village Press. Today they are New Zealand’s largest producers of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, processing enough olives to make more than 100,000 litres of the golden liquid each year.
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Once the oil is extracted the remaining finely ground by-product is destined for kitty litter and is also being trialled as dairy cow feed (mixed in with other things).
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
Al Brown, Ruth Pretty and Peta Mathias get their own branded oil from Village Press who bottle, label and pack the oil at the factory. Nathan also showed me newly labelled bottles with a big red heart destined for collaboration with the Returned Services Association.
Village Press Olive Oil factory in Hawkes Bay
You can find bottles and boxes of Village Press oil in New Zealand easily enough and the distinctive oils can also be purchased internationally via Amazon and Shopping Moa.
Nathan Casey and Peter Smith from Village Press Olive Oil, in Hawkes Bay