Farm-Produced Artisan Oils

2019 - Volume #43, Issue #1, Page #09

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Georgia farmer Clay Oliver set out to make biofuel for his tractors and ended up producing artisan oils for the kitchen. Now Oliver Oil Co. makes multiple food-grade oils, as well as flour from the meal byproduct.
  Oliver raised peanuts, pecans and sunflowers. He bought an oilseed press in 2012.
  Oliver didn’t expect to find a market for peanut oil, as it was already plentiful. However, chefs who tried his oil liked it for its green peanut flavor. A market developed for his other cold-pressed oils as well. Unlike most commercial processes, cold pressing uses neither chemicals nor high temperatures to remove oil.
  “People are more concerned about over processed or highly processed foods,” says Oliver. “We use screw presses to extract the oil, run it through a filter and a centrifuge to clean it, and then we bottle it. The natural vitamins, minerals, colors, flavors and smells are there.”
  When a chef mentioned benne, an African word for sesame seed, Oliver pressed oil from it as well. Today he presses and markets pecan, green peanut, sunflower, benne, pumpkin and okra seed oils. He infuses oils with herbs and spices.
  Soon he moved into making flours as well. The gluten-free flour is milled onsite using the remains of nuts and seeds left over when the oil is removed. The flour is high in protein and low in carbohydrates. Oliver notes that they are interchangeable with wheat flour in many recipes and especially good for breading and batters.
  “We had this really dry, defatted seed or nut meal,” says Oliver. “I saw an ad for a mill, bought it and started grinding the meal into a really fine flour. The pecan flour gives a neat flavor and texture and is great in brownie and cookie recipes.”
  Oliver gives a lot of credit for his success to word-of-mouth promotion. Soon after buying his first oil press, he was invited to speak at a Growing Local conference. Attendees referred him to a chef in Atlanta who likes to support local foods.
  “He happened to be a celebrity chef, and his word of mouth and promotion helped us grow,” says Oliver.
  Oliver acknowledges educating the public as the biggest challenge he faced. While the chef’s endorsement helped, he also took his products to local farmers markets for feedback.
  “We found out what people liked and didn’t,” he says. “We changed our bottle sizes and added recipes and use suggestions to labels and shared what people said on our website and in social media.”
  Oliver admits he didn’t intend to go down the road he has. “I was intending to make biodiesel to fuel my center pivots,” he says. “I saw a niche with the oils that others weren’t doing. We never borrowed any money. We started small and grew little by little.”
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Oliver Oil Co., 1073 Pierce Rd., Pitts, Ga. 31072 (ph 229 406-0906; ifarmueat@hotmail.com; www.oliverfarm.com).

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Farm-Produced Artisan Oils FARM HOME Food Georgia farmer Clay Oliver set out to make biofuel for his tractors and ended up producing artisan oils for the kitchen Now Oliver Oil Co makes multiple food-grade oils as well as flour from the meal byproduct Oliver raised peanuts pecans and sunflowers He bought an oilseed press in 2012 Oliver didn’t expect to find a market for peanut oil as it was already plentiful However chefs who tried his oil liked it for its green peanut flavor A market developed for his other cold-pressed oils as well Unlike most commercial processes cold pressing uses neither chemicals nor high temperatures to remove oil “People are more concerned about over processed or highly processed foods ” says Oliver “We use screw presses to extract the oil run it through a filter and a centrifuge to clean it and then we bottle it The natural vitamins minerals colors flavors and smells are there ” When a chef mentioned benne an African word for sesame seed Oliver pressed oil from it as well Today he presses and markets pecan green peanut sunflower benne pumpkin and okra seed oils He infuses oils with herbs and spices Soon he moved into making flours as well The gluten-free flour is milled onsite using the remains of nuts and seeds left over when the oil is removed The flour is high in protein and low in carbohydrates Oliver notes that they are interchangeable with wheat flour in many recipes and especially good for breading and batters “We had this really dry defatted seed or nut meal ” says Oliver “I saw an ad for a mill bought it and started grinding the meal into a really fine flour The pecan flour gives a neat flavor and texture and is great in brownie and cookie recipes ” Oliver gives a lot of credit for his success to word-of-mouth promotion Soon after buying his first oil press he was invited to speak at a Growing Local conference Attendees referred him to a chef in Atlanta who likes to support local foods “He happened to be a celebrity chef and his word of mouth and promotion helped us grow ” says Oliver Oliver acknowledges educating the public as the biggest challenge he faced While the chef’s endorsement helped he also took his products to local farmers markets for feedback “We found out what people liked and didn’t ” he says “We changed our bottle sizes and added recipes and use suggestions to labels and shared what people said on our website and in social media ” Oliver admits he didn’t intend to go down the road he has “I was intending to make biodiesel to fuel my center pivots ” he says “I saw a niche with the oils that others weren’t doing We never borrowed any money We started small and grew little by little ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Oliver Oil Co 1073 Pierce Rd Pitts Ga 31072 ph 229 406-0906; ifarmueat@hotmail com; www oliverfarm com

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