A doctor, an island and oil: The olive journey of Peter Crelinsten

Twenty-five years ago on a Mediterranean island a retired doctor learnt about olives. Now he's brought that knowledge, and the pursuit of their health benefits, to Kerikeri at Puketi Olive Farm.On the banks of the Kerikeri River, Puketi Olive Farm rests. It's here where retired doctor, Peter Crelinsten, is cultivating not only the oil from the olives but the health benefits too. Listen to Peter Crelinsten from Puketi Olive FarmPeter's connection with olives dates back to the 1990s when he resided on the Maltese island of Gozo, in the Mediterranean. As he walks through his small grove of 180 trees with Country Life, just outside of Kerikeri in the Far North, he shares he first fell in love with olive trees after learning the plant's history, all while renovating a 500-year-old collapsed farmhouse on the island of Gozo."We first started using olives to feed ourselves probably about 7000 BC or 9000 years ago. And that's documented from carbon dating of seeds and pits in Palestine, Israel and Jordan."It's a fascinating tree. It's been around a long time. It's the very first tree we actually harvested a fruit from. The second was the fig tree and the third was the pomegranate. So those were the first three fruits that humans started consuming."He continues that the island and neighbouring states had their trees destroyed through various past conflicts, hundreds of years ago. So Peter then started planting trees on the island himself. "If you would have Googled the island of Gozo in the early 2000s there was one green patch on the island. "That was our olive grove. I think we had the largest grove on the island with 100 trees."So how did Peter find his way to New Zealand?Having worked in Russell, in the Bay of Islands, as the doctor during the eighties Peter says New Zealand called him back."This was the area of New Zealand I was familiar with. And so we moved back here in 2011 and planted all the trees again."It's the health benefits that drive Peter's mission. He says extra-virgin olive oil contains a group of compounds known as polyphenols, which contribute to its health benefits. Peter explains the health advantages become particularly significant when the polyphenol levels are above 250 mg per litre. This year, his oil boasts a polyphenol level of 425 mg per litre. The year before it was 543 mg per litre. Peter emphasises the importance of early harvesting, explaining, "As the olives mature on the trees, the oil content goes up. But as the oil matures, the polyphenol levels go down." …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details