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Business & Economy

Could An Olive Oil Boom Be In California's Future?

KVPR | By Joe Moore

Published July 30, 2014 at 6:50 PM PDT

We all know Central California produces most of the state’s petroleum, but could another oil boom be on the horizon? Well, that’s what journalist Nathanael Johnson from the online environmental news website Grist argues in a new article that came out last week – but he’s not talking about fracking or the Monterey Shale – he’s talking about olive oil.

Johnson argues that olive trees are more drought tolerant than crops like almonds. That combined with increased domestic demand for olive oil, and higher quality when compared with imports could make the Central Valley an even bigger player in the world of olive oil.

This week on Valley Edition with spoke with Johnson, as well as Robert Rocha of ENZO Olive Oil a local artisanal olive oil producer in Fresno and Madera counties.

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Business & Economy Agriculture Fresno Clovis madera food drought 2014 drought olives olive oil ENZO

Joe Moore

Joe Moore is the President and General Manager of KVPR / Valley Public Radio. He has led the station through major programming changes, the launch of KVPR Classical and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership the station was named California Non-Profit of the Year by Senator Melissa Hurtado (2019), and won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting (2022).

See stories by Joe Moore

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