The Olive Harvest in the Holy Land Produced at the Global Centre, Exeter Community Centre, St David’s Hill Photographs: Paul Adrian Raymond unless otherwise stated.

For many thousands of years, farmers in the Eastern Mediterranean have grown olive trees for their tiny fruits and rich cooking oil. The 10 million olive trees of Israel and Palestine produce some of the highest quality olive oil in the world due to the area’s warm, dry climate. Slide 1: Olives and olive trees in the Holy Land

For Palestinian farmers, the Autumn olive harvest is an important annual event. The whole community helps out – men, women and children. The olives are gathered into sacks, ready to be sent to the olive press at the end of the day. Slide 2: The olive harvest, a community event

At the press, the day’s olives are washed then fed into a mill to be crushed, mixed with water and turned into a thick pulp. Slide 3: At the olive press

The paste is then fed into machines that separate the oil from the water and solid matter. Slide 4: Producing the oil

The fresh oil is collected in canisters and the solid matter, a dry powder called jiffit, is kept in sacks. Slide 5: Storing the oil

The Jiffit is later spread out on the roadside to dry in the sun. It still has some oil in it and is a very rich fuel. People burn it in stoves to heat their houses during the winter. Slide 6: Making use of the whole olive

Sadly, Palestinian farmers often find it hard to reach their trees and markets due to movement restrictions imposed by the Israeli authorities, which have controlled the Palestinian West Bank since (Photo: Marc Juillard / EAPPI) Slide 7: Occupation and movement restrictions

Palestinian farmers also face the threat of violence by armed Israeli settlers who live in colonies on land illegally confiscated from the Palestinians. (Photo: Simi Ann Solaas / EAPPI) Slide 8: The threat of violence

Fortunately, due to the presence of international volunteers, farmers are able to reach many more of their trees. Some of the trees are older than Christianity itself. This one is around 2,000 years old, but still produces thousands of tiny fruits every year. Slide 9: International accompaniment, ancient trees

Palestinian farmers used to receive only £1 per kilogram for their olives, far short of the £3.50 per kilo production costs. However, by selling their olive oil through Fairtrade, they receive £4 per kilo – plus the Fairtrade “social premium” which they invest in local community projects. You can buy Zaytoun Fairtrade olive oil from the Global Centre – Slide 10: The benefits of Fairtrade

Receiving a fair price for their olives has inspired Palestinian farmers to plant new trees and look to a brighter future on the land their ancestors have farmed since the time of Christ.