Starting an Olive Farm

Olive farms are indeed very profitable in the mid and long term, provided the climate and the region are suitable for growing olive trees. However, as it happens in nearly all agriculture and livestock commercial activities, the first year is introductory and a farmer shall make a small rational investment in order to test his/her strength and acquire a basic understanding of the market, without expecting a considerable income. During the second, the third and the fourth years, the farmer will acquire enough farming experience and market data in order to decide on extending the investment to a larger scale, selecting another location/ variety, adjusting cultivation methods or divest.

Especially when cultivating olive trees, a farmer shall be patient, because olive trees achieve good yields after their 5th or 6th year of life. This means, that if a farmer selects and plants young trees of 2-3 years old, then he/she shall expect good yield about 2-4 years after the establishment of the olive farm. Moreover, as it happens in nearly all fruit trees, you need economies of scale. This means that you cannot make a good income and live solely from growing 30 or 50 olive trees, because fixed costs will surely reach (if not exceed) earnings. The minimum number of trees providing a good income ranges from country to country. However, we can say that a farm of 1 hectare (10.000 square meters) with 300 trees is a good start. You can see here Olive Oil Prices

You can enrich this article by leaving a comment of your olive farm’s profitability or success.

1.) Olive Tree Information & Uses

2.) Growing Olive Trees

3.) Are Olive Farms profitable?

4.) Olive Tree Alternate Bearing

5.) Olive Tree Propagation & Pollination

6.) Olive Tree Climate – Temperature Requirements

7.) Olive Tree Soil Requirements

8.) Planting Olive Trees

9.) Olive Tree Fertilizer Requirements

10.) Olive Tree Water Requirements

11.) Olive Tree Pruning

12.) Harvesting Olives

13.) Olive Trees Diseases and Pests

14.) Q&As Olive Trees

15.) Olives Wholesale Distributors

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