OTA | Olivicoltori Toscani Associati

ACTIVITIES & SERVICES

our services

The Cooperativa Olivicoltori Toscani Associati offers its members a wide range of services aimed at supporting all phases of olive oil production, from cultivation to marketing. In particular, the services offered include:

Technical assistance for the establishment of new olive groves, with specific advice on plant management at all stages of growth. This includes

Fertilising, to ensure that plants get the nutrients they need.
Pruning, to ensure healthy and productive plant growth.
Phytosanitary protection to protect olive groves from diseases and pests.
Soil management for the optimisation of the agronomic conditions of the olive grove.

Oil mill: in the cooperative’s oil mill, members can use olive pressing services, with the possibility of conferring the oil produced for marketing. The cooperative also offers third-party packaging services, allowing members to market their oil with professional packaging.

Training and dissemination: The cooperative pays particular attention to the professional training of its members. It organises courses and meetings to improve technical skills and to keep members up to date with news and useful information about the olive sector.

These services provide members with the support they need to optimally manage their olive-growing activities, with a constant focus on product quality and improving professional skills.

activities

Oil mill

The Cooperativa Olivicoltori Toscani Associati oil mill is located a few kilometres from Florence, nestled in the picturesque landscape of the Florentine hills. This modern mill uses a continuous cycle plant, consisting of two Pieralisi processing lines, a state-of-the-art technology that allows it to handle an average annual production capacity of about 2,500/3,000 tonnes of olives.

One of the distinctive aspects of the mill is operational efficiency: members who wish to press their own olives can book the processing, minimising the waiting time between harvesting and pressing. This organisation practically eliminates the storage time of the olives in the mill, guaranteeing fast and fresh processing, which is essential to maintain the quality of the oil.

Processing is carried out according to strict standards to ensure an oil of the highest quality. Some of the protocols followed are

Precise sorting of each batch of olives to ensure traceability and purity of the product.
Meticulous control of temperatures and kneading times, critical steps that influence the aromatic profile and organoleptic quality of the oil.
Maximum attention is paid to hygiene, both in the premises and in the machinery, a fundamental aspect of maintaining product integrity and meeting the highest food safety standards.

Thanks to this meticulous approach, the cooperative’s mill is able to produce an oil of the highest quality, an expression of the tradition and care that characterise Tuscan olive growing.

Quality Programme

Cooperativa Olivicoltori Toscani Associati carries out various projects aimed at improving the quality of the oil and promoting environmentally friendly olive growing practices, in accordance with European Union regulations.

These initiatives are aimed at promoting sustainable, high quality production and include the following main actions:

Improving the environmental impact of olive growing

Maintenance of olive groves with high environmental value:
Collective projects aimed at maintaining olive groves that have a high environmental value or are at risk of abandonment. These actions include technical support for the sustainable management of these olive groves in order to preserve their ecological and landscape value.
Develop and disseminate good agricultural practices:
Establishment of olive cultivation guidelines based on environmental criteria and adapted to local specificities. These good practices will be disseminated to olive growers, accompanied by continuous monitoring to assess their application in the field and their effectiveness in reducing environmental impact.
Alternative techniques for olive fly control:
Implementation of practical demonstrations on the use of alternative techniques to the use of chemicals for the control of the olive fly, one of the main pests plaguing olive crops. These techniques aim to reduce the use of pesticides, promoting more environmentally friendly agriculture.

Improving the quality of olive oil production

Optimisation of olive growing and management conditions:
Interventions aimed at improving cultivation, harvesting, delivery and storage practices of olives prior to their processing into oil. Among these, special attention is given to the fight against the olive fly, to improve yields and fruit quality. Ongoing technical assistance is also planned to help producers implement these improvements.
Technical support for the processing industry:
Specific technical assistance to oil mills and the oil processing industry, with particular emphasis on the quality aspects of the final product. This assistance helps to optimise the transformation processes in order to maintain high quality standards.
Training of oil tasters:
Launching training programmes for professional tasters with the aim of developing skills in the sensory analysis of extra virgin olive oil. This will improve the ability to assess oil quality and promote the culture of excellence.

Consultancy

Thanks to the many years of experience of its technicians, the cooperative is able to address the problems that members may encounter in managing their olive groves.
Advice ranges from soil cultivation, fertility management, pruning and phytosanitary treatments to olive harvesting and storage.

On request, our technicians will inspect the olives to determine the presence and extent of oil flies and other pests, and guide the grower in control measures.

Training

The tasting courses, held by expert tasters, are aimed both at consumers who want to know more about Tuscan extra-virgin olive oil, its characteristics, its merits and its use in typical Tuscan cuisine, and at operators in the sector who want to deepen their knowledge of the product and the methods of organoleptic evaluation.

The pruning courses, held by expert pruners, are aimed at those who wish to learn the art of pruning using modern techniques and revisiting old methods.

Packaging

In addition to the oil mill, the Cooperative has a modern oil packaging and storage facility and is therefore available to all members who wish to have their oil packaged.

Packaging can be carried out without quantity limits and in all types of formats. In addition, filtering and storage services are performed.

Tastings

The Cooperative organises various types of courses on the sensory analysis of oils: from mini-tasting courses to three-level training courses and courses for official tasters. The courses given by expert tasters are aimed at operators in the sector, technicians and consumers.

Ask for information about tasting courses: sede@olivicoltoritoscani.it

Guided tours

At its olive mill, O.T.A. welcomes groups of visitors by appointment, with the aim of introducing them to the facility and the various stages of olive processing through which high-quality extra virgin olive oil is produced.

become a member

To date, there are more than 8,000 members throughout the region.

Membership is open to olive growers (natural or legal persons) operating in the administrative territory of the region of Tuscany, by submitting an application to the Board of Directors of the Cooperative and paying a share capital of € 100,00.

The Board of Directors decides on admission at its first meeting.

facilitations

O.T.A. often enters into agreements with suppliers of technical equipment and services in order to offer discounts to its members. The following agreements are currently in place:

Agreement with Oleificio Montalbano for the purchase of technical means for agriculture at favourable prices.

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