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At the COR… America's Largest Grower & Processor of Olive Oil
Although there are over 300 small artisan olive oil growers
and producers in California, California Olive Ranch (COR)
is by far the largest and most innovative in the country.
The 700-acre ranch is headquartered in Oroville, a Northern
California agricultural community located near the Sierra
Nevada foothills. With over 300,000 trees, COR's fall harvest
will yield America's most abundant crop of olives grown exclusively
for the creation of premium olive oil.
At the COR… A Unique Growing Method
 Early
in 1999, California Olive Ranch (COR) planted two highly prized
Spanish olive varietals - Arbequina and Arbosana. These nursery-grown
plants were not the normal size for olive trees. They were
semi-dwarf olive trees with the same height of hearty winegrape
vines. Besides using Mediterranean olive varietals, COR also
imported a relatively new, innovative farming method from
Spain called "High Density Plantings" (HDPs).
Using this system, COR planted 670 semi-dwarf olive trees
per acre, versus the traditional method of 120 trees per acre.
Besides increasing annual yields per acre, COR has also been
able to harvest their first crop much earlier. Regular olive
trees usually begin producing fruit after five to seven years,
while COR's semi-dwarf trees produce their first fruit after
only two years of growth.
At the COR… High Density Harvesting
The traditional way to harvest olives is by handpicking each
fruit, then allowing this ripe fruit to sit in the sun during
the collection process. Because of California Olive Ranch's
(COR) use of dwarf olive trees, mechanical harvesting machines
are used to rapidly pick the fruit and deliver it to the processing
facility - all within minutes instead of hours or days like
conventional methods.
COR's technologically-advanced planting and harvesting methods
help to solve the high cost issues inherent with hand harvesting,
and also ensure the quality, food safety, and freshness of
its extra virgin olive oil.
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At the COR… Careful Crushing & Clarification
The outstanding quality of California Olive Ranch's (COR)
extra virgin olive oil is achieved by carefully crushing the
olives to extract the first juice. This raw olive juice is
then smoothed and clarified by the natural procedure of decanting.
This process ensures that all the fruit's rich flavor, healthy
vitamins and antioxidants are kept at their very best.
At the COR… California's Most Advanced Olive Oil Processing
Facility
 California
Olive Ranch's (COR) state of the art processing facility is
located in the middle of our 700-acre orchard. As California's
largest olive oil mill, it's designed to produce an abundant
supply of fresh, flavorful, aromatic extra virgin olive oil.
To ensure the very purest quality and genuine freshness, 12
stainless steel storage tanks can hold over 115,000 gallons
of COR's just-pressed oil. These tanks are nitrogen-injected
to prevent rancidity and other contaminants. To preserve the
orchard-fresh taste and integrity of the natural oil, COR's
storage tanks are maintained and monitored in a strictly regulated,
climate-controlled environment.
At the COR… From Branch to Bottle Quality
 In
order to be called an "estate-grown" olive oil,
the final product must be grown, harvested and processed on
the same farm or estate. California Olive Ranch's (COR) staff
is always in total control of its premium olive oil from the
first bud on a tree branch to the last bottle on our high-speed
processing line. Rigid quality control, constant product testing,
and periodic tastings all help to enhance the exceptional
taste of COR's Arbequina and Arbosana gourmet olive oils.
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