Processing

The Gwydir Olives factory in Inverell NSW was officially opened in 1999 and the facility was heralded as being a significant addition to the Inverell district.

Built with Hebel concrete walls and an insulated roof, the temperature inside the factory remains low even on the hottest days.

The modules of the plant are linked by a central computerised work station. The factory manager is responsible for smooth operation during the processing season and maintains a very high standard of hygiene during production.

The plant is HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) accredited and maintains Organic Certification.

The Alfa Laval processing plant was imported from Italy.

For enquiries and pricing on olive processing or the purchase of bulk oil, please contact our Manager, 

Olive processing begins by weighing the olives and then delivering the fruit to a hopper by forklift

After entering the hopper, a conveyor delivers the olives to the first module, where air and water are used to separate the olives from twigs and leaves.

The olives are washed thoroughly in the second module.

Quality control is maintained throughout the process. The condition of the olives is checked  prior to crushing.

The olives enter the toothed disc crusher to be macerated and forms a paste. The crusher operates at 1500 rpm and generates very little heat. This method avoids the deterioration that excess heat causes to in the oil, resulting in a higher quality and better flavoured oil.

The paste is transferred to the Malaxer for malaxing or stirring at an optimum temperature for up to 60 minutes. This stirring assists the release of the oil from the paste.

Checking the temperature of the malaxing olives.

The paste is then sent to the decanter that separates water, paste and oil by centrifugal force. The olive oilis collected at the end of the process.

The oil is piped to a separator that cleans the oil of any remaining water. Finally the oil is gravity fed into holding tanks in the cellar.

The whole process takes approximately an hour and a half from olive to oil.The oil is settled in tanks and sealed under nitrogen which prevents the oil from oxidising.

In 2006, the factory processed over 1,000 tonnes of olives.

Every batch of oil is tested for its free fatty acid level and undergoes organoleptic (sensory) assessment.

An important aspect of olive oil production is blending to obtain a consistent flavour.

Gwydir Olives P/L, 35 Brissett Street, Inverell NSW. |   ph: 02 6721 2727   |   Fax: 02 6721 2728  |