A Pennsylvania native living in Crete, Dr. Lisa Radinovsky is the founder of Greek Liquid Gold, the only wide-ranging English-language website dedicated to the Greek olive oil world. Since its launch in 2016, she has established herself as one of the foremost writers on the topic, promoting Greek olive oil and its industry internationally. Here, she talks to Business Partners about Greek olive oil’s outstanding quality and potential and what it will take for the industry to truly flourish.
What motivated you to launch greekliquidgold.com?
Living in Crete with my Greek husband, I decided to turn from teaching online university courses on American literature to writing about life in Greece. Searching for freelance writing opportunities, I came across Olive Oil Times, a U.S.-based online publication focused on the global olive oil industry. After I’d written a few articles, the editors asked me to cover the Greek olive oil sector. I protested that I knew nothing about it, but they were sure I could learn. They were correct, but in 2015 it wasn’t easy, because there was almost no up-to-date information about Greek olive oil available in English.
So I interviewed Greek olive oil producers, marketers, judges, and millers and learned a great deal from them—more than Olive Oil Times could publish. At the same time, I was inspired by enthusiastic Greek olive oil professionals who were dedicated to producing exceptional products to share with consumers around the world. I considered it unfair that when Americans think of olive oil, they think of Italy, not Greece, although much of the olive oil bottled in and exported from Italy actually comes from Greece. I decided to help elevate perceptions of this Greek liquid gold.
How has the conversation around Greek olive oil evolved over the past decade?
Many Greeks—especially young people—are determined to upgrade the reputation of Greek extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). Quite a few have created small family businesses to sell their own EVOO, bottled and branded. There’s a growing feeling that it doesn’t make sense for Italy to get so much of the added value that comes with the bottling and branding of Greek olive oil. Progress is evident as Greek extra virgin olive oils appear near the top of international award lists, but a much larger reduction in bulk sales is still needed.
Greek olive oil professionals are dedicated to producing exceptional products to share with consumers around the world
In recent years, Greece has also become known for a variety of excellent flavored olive oils, with Greek companies dominating the international awards in this category. Moreover, along with its flavor and versatility, olive oil’s health benefits are now central to conversations in Greece, from scientific conferences to marketing. Following EU Regulation 432/2012 regarding the health benefits of olive oil polyphenols, Greek scientists are pioneering research on those health benefits, the production of high phenolic olive oil, and the creation of supplements made from it.
On the other hand, the industry is facing rising production, labor, bottling, and transportation costs as well as the effects of climate change, as producers cope with all-too-frequent droughts, fires, and floods. So sustainable production practices involving organic cultivation, regenerative farming, and the circular economy are often discussed. On the plus side, olive groves’ ability to function as carbon sinks is emphasized as part of the reason olive oil is an environmentally-friendly product—a point that resonates with numerous consumers.
What needs to change for Greek olive oil to gain the global recognition and commercial value it deserves as some of the world’s highest quality olive oil?
Greek olive oil experts have long called for more education, collaboration, branding, and effective promotion. Education regarding best practices and new technology for cultivation, harvesting, production, transportation, storage, and longterm optimization of profits. Collaboration at all levels, from small-scale producers sharing costs and pooling resources to everyone from producers, cooperatives, and company owners to academics and government officials coming together to develop and act on a plan for a healthier Greek olive oil sector and promotion of Greek olive oil internationally.
More education, collaboration, branding, and effective promotion are essential for Greek olive oil to gain the global recognition and value it deserves
There’s agreement that there should be far fewer bulk exports and more bottling and branding done in Greece. Yet a need for immediate income from bulk sales and many small-scale producers’ inability to invest in bottling and branding get in the way of major change, so financial struggles need to be addressed. In terms of marketing, I would personally love to see (and contribute to) a large-scale, effective international promotion campaign for Greek olive oil, to help Greece catch up with Italy and Spain’s impressive marketing efforts.
How is tourism contributing to the industry’s growth?
Olive oil tourism and promotion of the traditional Greek Mediterranean diet and lifestyle have enormous potential to support the growth of the Greek olive oil sector. Greece offers a wide variety of olive oil-focused agrotourism and food tourism options, from olive oil tastings to harvesting experiences and olive grove and mill tours, which can combine olive oil and wine as well as numerous traditional Greek products and foods. Among tourists, many olive oil agnostics are converted to loyal believers in the great flavor and value of Greek olive oil.
In addition, conferences focused on olive oil, the traditional Cretan or Greek Mediterranean diet, or lifestyle medicine examine the long list of health and environmental benefits that research associates with EVOO and the traditional Greek diet and lifestyle.
Both conferences and tourism tend to create ambassadors for high-quality Greek olive oil who take Greek EVOO home with them or purchase it once they’re home, as well as recommending it to others. When high-quality bottled Greek virgin olive oil appears consistently on restaurant tables as provided by law, this also creates additional demand for bottled products within Greece.
How can organizations such as AmCham Greece support export-oriented growth, international partnerships, and the global positioning of Greek products and producers?
I think organizations such as the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce that share my goals of connecting Greek businesses featuring high-quality products with businesspeople and consumers in and beyond the USA can offer valuable support to Greek olive oil companies that are interested in the US market. The Chamber’s Agrotechnology, Circular Economy, and Education, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship committees seem especially interesting for the olive oil sector, while the Tourism Committee is also relevant as olive oil tourism continues to develop in Greece. I believe professional staff and members actively working on forging connections and partnerships, and promoting business and trade relations, can play an important role in increasing knowledge and appreciation of Greek products and brands abroad.
