Does that sound good?

Then you are at TEIKEI Olive precisely !

TEIKEI Olive was born out of awareness of the financial difficulties faced by Greek olive farmers who are struggling to survive despite producing sustainable and high-quality olive oil. Often, only a fraction of the money consumers spend on olive oil reaches the producers. Many are therefore forced to use environmentally harmful methods to cope with the price pressure of the market.

Our solution: We connect producers and consumers directly. Thanks to our solidarity concept, which does not require any middlemen, everyone involved is seen as ONE team.

Our project began in Vasilitsi, in the southwestern tip of the Peloponnese, in the Cape Akritas nature reserve. There, in the midst of Koroneiki olive trees, is Vicky and Panos Marantos' grove. The mountainous slopes border directly on the sea, and over 100 family farms from the area cultivate their olive groves in this harsh climate.

Panos usually begins harvesting in mid to late October, sometimes in early November. By starting the harvest early, the olive fly can be avoided as a pest and the highest possible quality can be achieved. However, as TEIKEI olive oil is a natural product, the harvest time can change depending on the weather. Harvesting is done exclusively by hand with a rake or an electrically operated hand shaker. This method is time-consuming, but also the most gentle, as the soil, trees and olives are less stressed.

The olives are caught in nets that are placed under the trees, roughly separated from the leaves and filled into boxes. The harvest is then carefully transported to the oil mill within 24 hours for further processing in order to ensure the quality of the oil, as the olives quickly begin to decompose after picking and if they are slightly damaged.

Our goal is to do outstanding work from the soil where the olive tree is rooted to the bottle from which you pour your olive oil.

We are building a community of olive oil lovers who want to enjoy and promote delicious and sustainable olive oil. Whether individually or organized in consumption communities, our members purchase an olive oil subscription and give the farmers the security that their harvest will be purchased. In return, you enjoy carefully grown and perfectly extracted Greek olive oil. In this way, we create proximity and pay really fair prices.

From the farmers to the ecological transport by sailing ship to our bottling operations in your region - we focus on sustainability and fairness. Between 2015 and 2023 we have already sold over 20 tons of olive oil from our TEIKEI olive producer.

Our focus is on healthy agriculture and soil, trusting cooperation and a sustainable economy. We are sailing past the globalized markets with a fresh wind to connect people instead of dividing them. Although we have not yet reached our goal, we are working every day to get closer to our visions, step by step.

The olive trees that are cared for and harvested by the TEIKEI Olive Community are rooted in Cape Akritas, a nature reserve in the Peloponnese. The question "What do you need to continue farming?" is at the heart of our work and is aimed at producers on the Greek peninsula.

The farming community in Vasilitsi is organized by Panagiotis Marantos, his wife Vicky and Felix. They are dedicated to coordinating the community of olive farmers in the region, the harvest and the production of olive oil. Our goal is to create long-term prospects for the local people through socially and ecologically sustainable farming.

We are currently cooperating with local networks such as the Terra Plena Fund and the Panhellenic Biocyclic Vegan Network. These collaborations enable us to transform the olive pomace from olive oil production into high-quality humus soil.

Dr. agr. Johannes Eisenbach, an agronomist, provides valuable insights into soil management. Panagiotis Manikis, founder of the Natural Farming Center in Edessa, supports our farmers with his expertise in natural farming and helps them to deal with extreme weather and the development of biodiversity.

The annual harvest is carefully picked, sorted on site, packed in boxes and processed into high-quality, cold-pressed olive oil within 24 hours in the nearest cooperative-run olive press. In 2017 alone, six tons came from eight small farmers in the Vasilitsi region.

Our olive oil is bottled in family-run businesses immediately after the harvest. We then pack the pallets and hand them over to a logistics company. The goods are transported by truck and ferry from Patras to Italy and then on through the Gotthard to the Rhine. We organize bottling campaigns in small warehouses or send your order directly to your door.

Our goal is to produce zero emissions and zero waste, so we work with companies that offer environmentally friendly solutions. This includes transport by sailing ship with the Timbercoast shipping company, which supports Mission Zero. This avoids pollution of the oceans with heavy oil and noise.

We are also preparing to switch land transport from diesel trucks to rail. We can implement this for pallets of 33 or more. In future, final distribution in urban regions will be carried out using cargo bikes, as has already been successfully done in Basel.

Happy people with empty barrels meet fresh olive oil straight from the mill. We are ready to refill your barrels - either together on site or by post to share with family, neighbors and friends. In this way we practice resource-saving logistics, avoid waste and enjoy together.

If you would like us to carry out such an action in your community, please contact us! We will come personally and bring everything that is needed - provided that you and your community are interested in distributing a share of the harvest from a 1,000-liter tank.

We also cooperate with unpackaged stores and offer the olive oil in reusable bottles. If you would like to get a taste of our olive oil first, you can also place one-off orders. More information at YOUR OLIVE OIL.

Olive oil lovers join together as consumer communities to facilitate the entire production and transport chain. They order and enjoy their olive oil together. The risks of harvesting and purchasing are not borne solely by the olive farmers, but are shared by the entire community. Anyone can become part of the TEIKEI olive community - be it as an individual, an existing consumer community, solidarity agriculture, food cooperative, unpackaged store or commercial company.

In order to ensure maximum transparency in the value chain, olive oil is distributed as directly as possible. Retail sales are therefore only possible sporadically. The aim is for all consumers to pre-finance their olive oil and thus become part of the economy. This purchase guarantee ensures that financing for cultivation and transport is secured at an early stage. Over the course of the year, members then receive freshly bottled olive oil directly to their home or to their local consumer community.
The organization in consumer communities forms a decentralized network of members that shortens transport routes and creates more resilient economic routes through mutual support.

TEIKEI Olive is also committed to establishing a legal form with responsible ownership, which is intended to represent a milestone for intergenerational action in the cultivation, production and distribution of olive oil. The TEIKEI Olive community is growing steadily and gaining more and more members. TEIKEI Olive is thus steadily approaching the goal of an annual olive oil volume of 80 tons in order to operate and finance the entire value chain sustainably.

The price of €14.50 per litre of olive oil applies to group orders of mild olive oil and in reusable barrels, with no postage. Additional shipping costs apply for individual households and one-off orders.

The calculation for unharvested olives on a tree is the same regardless of the degree of ripeness. It covers the work of the olive farmers as well as the costs of TEIKEI olive and fixed expenses. In addition, the time of harvest (green, purple, black olives) and the packaging (bottle, canister, bag-in-box, or barrel) influence the production costs. Green olives harvested early produce less oil, but have higher polyphenol contents. The price varies depending on the type of packaging (disposable or reusable) and the time of harvest. In order to present this complex overall calculation transparently, we have applied it to an olive tree, because here we can meet and talk about it together.

The TEIKEI principles have already inspired other projects, including concepts for tropical fruits from Greece. In the future, all TEIKEI projects will be organized through a non-profit network that offers training and support opportunities. The goal of TEIKEI is a new economic model that fairly takes into account the needs of all those involved and leaves no losers behind.

Click here for the project overview of TEIKEI.US