Mayor Jean-Yves Chapelet, Oléole association president Bertrand Dumas and Mas president Éric Charray were present for the presentation of bottles of olive oil. Midi Libre – C.L.
One hundred and ninety-one liters of olives were produced thanks to the solidarity harvest organized last fall by the Oléole association. Seventy liters were offered at the Mas table.
The Oléole association organized the presentation of the solidarity olive oil vintage this Saturday, January 11, at the premises of the Maison des alternatives solidaires (Mas) in the presence of around twenty volunteers and the mayor of the city, Jean-Yves Chapelet. Thanks to three harvests carried out between October 19 and November 2, 191 liters of olive oil were produced at the Bourg-Saint-Andéol mill. “With this event, we want to promote healthier and more sustainable food for all,” says the president of the Oléole association, Bertrand Dumas. Each volunteer and individual who participated in this great success received their bottle. The Mas will collect 70 liters to prepare its weekly meals. “It's a substantial donation because we can put the budget elsewhere, underlines the president of Mas Eric Charray. An event like the solidarity harvest is very important to us because sharing and connection are the very essence of our activities.”
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For this 6th edition, 1.7 tons of olives were collected and that's a record! It must be said that each season, the event brings together more and more volunteers. In the fall, there were nearly seventy of them participating in the three days of solidarity harvesting organized on several sites in Bagnols, Saint-Nazaire and Laudun. Oléole was also able to count on the support of around twenty individuals who donated around 220 kg of olives. For more efficient harvesting, the association equipped itself with two electric combs this year year.
The municipality makes its olive trees available
The olive groves in Bagnols represent 66% of the total quantity harvested and the olive trees in the city centre around 30%. Since the beginning of this operation, the municipality has made its trees available for this harvest. “We are very happy to collaborate with Oléole, confides Jean-Yves Chapelet. There are olive trees all over the city. Before, the first one who came to pick the olives. Now we give meaning to what we do. It's not just the production of oil. There is also the social bond created between all the volunteers.” The town hall has collected six bottles of oil.
New projects for Oléole
The Oléole association wants, for its part, to develop its actions to promote the cultivation of the olive. “We have requests from individuals who would like us to restore their olive groves. I have about ten in mind, but we lack the means. We are looking for a structure that could support us in setting up training projects.” And while waiting to find one, the volunteers continue the training workshops on olive tree pruning and oil tastings. A project to create a color chart is underway “to show that we can harvest green but ripe olives as early as October, before the flies attack the olives”.