OOCC 2016 Informational Program Set for January 13 in Sacramento

Attention all California olive oil producers, industry members and interested parties – please mark your calendars and plan to attend a special informational meeting on the Olive Oil Commission of California’s testing program and presentations on important research topics.

The meeting will be held January 13 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the first floor conference room of the California Farm Bureau Federation offices in Sacramento.

California’s new commission and its standard are getting a lot of attention of late, but what the OOCC does is not well understood by many people. This meeting is designed specifically to inform industry members and other interested parties about how and why the OOCC was developed and to show people what the program is doing.

The event will begin with an introduction by OOCC Chairman Jeff Colombini and Albert Katz, Chairman of the OOCC Advisory Committee and founding member of the California Olive Oil Council, on the evolution of the olive oil industry in California to set the stage for how the OOCC came to be.

Next, a panel of industry members and government auditors will review the OOCC’s mandatory sampling and testing program designed to ensure accurate labeling of California olive oil. The panel discussion will be led by Paul Miller, International Advisor to the Australian Olive Association and will cover what tests are being conducted through the program, what information the tests provide and how that information can be used to improve product knowledge from tree to tank. As part of this panel presentation attendees will learn about the science behind the tests and have an opportunity to ask questions.

The day’s agenda will also include a presentation on the analysis of fatty acid and sterol profiles from California olive oil samples gathered by the University of California Davis Olive Oil Center. Results of this important research project will be presented by Olive Center Executive Director Dan Flynn and Research Director Selina Wang.

Presentations will also be provided on olive knot research being done with OOCC support by Dr. Jim Adaskaveg of the Plant Pathology and Microbiology Department at the University of California Riverside and on olive leaf scorch (a disease caused by Xylella fastidiosa) Olive Leaf Scorch by Rodrigo Krugner, Research Entomologist for the USDA’s Ag Research Service.

The event will conclude with a reception. Click here for a copy of the meeting program and agenda.

The OOCC very much wants people both inside and outside the California industry to fully understand what the new program is doing and why. We are encouraging all members of the industry to attend whether they fall under the OOCC jurisdiction or not.

To register for the event, please call the Olive Oil Commission of California at (916) 441-1581 or send an email to info@OliveOilCommission.org with your name, company and email address.