The harvesting of the olives

The harvesting of the olives is an extremely important and delicate operation to be taken care of in order to obtain a high quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

To produce the best E.V.O. the appropriate method has to be chosen, the time must be the right one considering the ripeness of the drupes; finally, the olives should be transported to the olive oil mill using rigid and ventilated plastic crates to be milled within 24 hours from the picking.

The best harvesting methods are those based on the picking directly from the tree and are respectful of the branches and of the foliage in order to minimize injuries:
- manual picking done by hand or using special electric and pneumatic combs
- mechanical harvesting performed with trunk and branch shakers

Often in the past times the olive growers waited for the olives to fall from the trees due to their increasing ripeness and collected them directly from the ground: this method must be absolutely avoided because the oils obtained have a very low quality.

The best period for the olives to be picked coincides with the phenological phase so-called "invaiatura" (half-ripeness), when the specific fruit colouring is increasing until the fruit acquires the typical variety colour, remaining turgid and suitable for oil extraction. In the territories of Latium the picking is generally performed between the second half of October and the first half of December.

The harvested olives should be transported to the olive oil mill within 24 hours and must be pressed within 48 hours from picking in order to avoid harmful chemical processes which provoke the increase of acidity and of oxidation, with negative consequences for the final quality of the oil.