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Daniel Santacruz

Mankura de azeyte de oliva


Editor's note: English translation follows below.


Por el Dr. Selim Salti

La sezon de arokojer las azitunas ampesara en serka. Los aparejos, kada dia ke pasa, pujan para pueder estar pronto, visto ke el tiempo de la rekolta es bastante kurto. En muestro kavzo, mi ijo Moni se okupa de la organizsyon del personel para la rekolta. 

Este anyo, sin los arabos, ke no pueden entrar en el payis, i sin la posibilita de topar ovreros taylandezos, pensa ke devemos demandar ayudo de muestros keridos serkanos a darmos una mano para arekojer las azitunas.

Ademas, este anyo vamos a ser ekipados por dos muevos vibratores motorizados ke servirán a sakudir los arvoles sin muncho esforso, donde las azitunas kayendo en los files devran ser arekojidas en un muy kurto tiempo, lo ke nesesita manos, koza ke lo espero no mos mankara. 

Para ke la azeyte virjin no se vinagreye (asid) las azitunas ke se rekoltan devran ser esprimidas a lo mas tres oras mas tadre, otra dilema ke devemos areyevar. Penso ke en el medyo de Novembre ampesaremos la rekolta.

Vinyendo a la situasyon de la mueva rekolta en Israel, los espesialistos no la ven kon un buen ojo. Antes de todo, la produksyon de azeyte no abastese al 50% de la demanda, dunke la otra mita la importamos de la Evropa a saver en mayoriya de la Espanya, Italya i Gresia.

Estos payizes, ke en despartes kontrolan una grande parte de la konsomasyon lokala, azen grande konkerensya a los produktores israelianos. Komo savemos, munchos de eyos, para poeder egzistir en el merkado, a las vezes merkan azeyte rafinada segondarya de los evropeos i la mesklan kon sus produktos virjin para amengueser el koste.

El puevlo, no rendiendose kuento de la kualitad i mirando de merkar mas barato, konsumen en siertos kavzos una azeyte ke no sierve ke para mechas de kandelas i ke danya a la salud.

Para darvos una idea de la produksyon de azeyte de oliva en Israel, en mirando las istatistikas vemos ke en el anyo 2010 la produksyon era de 10 mil tonas. Esta kantidad dublo verso 2019 i en poko tiempo se pensa ke arivera a depasar las 25 mil tonas en los anyos vinideros. Israel es ovligado de importar azeyte de oliva i malgrado ke los presyos en el mundo pujan kada diya, la demanda interna es muy grande. 

El governo, para mirar de establisir presyos no tanto altos, amengo las taksas a la impotasyon, koza ke da preferensya a la azeyte ke viene del etranjero, donde el koste es finansado en partida por el payis eksportador.

Visto ke el produktor israeliano no resive semejante ayudo de la parte del governo, el se topa enfrente de una konkurensya no justa. Es ansi ke siertos de los mochaves kortaron sus arvoles despues de las peryitas ke tuvieron.

Este no es mi kavzo visto ke para mi la azeyte virjin ke prodyuzamos serve solo a mi famiya i mes keridos, tiene el label VOO, ke sinyifika 100% azeyte pura de oliva. Siendo un chiko produktor ke lavora kon amatorizmo, no nesesito ayudo de dingunos.

Ma si las otoridades kompetentes se okupan seryozamente a dezvelopar esta industria agrikola i se toma dechizyones urjentes de ayudo material i teknik, en poko tiempo, grasias a la kapachida i a la fakulta inovativa ke tenemos, pensó ke en los siete anyos vinideros Israel puedera abasteserse en totalidad en azeyte de oliva de kalitad i mizmo azer konkerensya en el merkado lokal a la Espanya,el payis produktor el mas grande del mundo.

Muestros enjenyeros agrikolos, kon sus kapachidades inovativas, kreyeran el ekipamento neseseryo para arekojer las azitunas sin empleyar munchos brazos umanos, koza ke mos eskabuyera de trayer ovreros palestinianos.    

Oganyo la gerra de una parte, la sekura del enverano pasado de la otra, kavzo ke la produksyon fue basha i no se aspera un mijor resultado de akel del anyo pasado. La mankura kavzo una pujita de 39% en el presyo del litro. A esto si se ajunta ke en el mundo uvo una pujita en los presyos de 7.6% de todas las azeytes a kavzo de la gerra en Ukranya, el kual es el mas grande produktror de azeyte kanola, devemos asperarmos a ke los presyos en el merkado israeliano pujaran mas.

Un otro problem oganyo es la proteksyon de los ovreros o de los volontaryos ke lavoraran en el norte de la Galile onde se topan milyones de arvoles de azitunas.

El governo i las otoridades lokalas devran de mirar a protejar esta djente en dándoles la posibilita de metersen al abrigo en kavzo de atakos de drones o de misiles. Se nesesita de krear kon primura refujyos, si no, no se puedra lavorar, koza ke agravara mas la mankasa de azeyte de oliva.


En 2003, el Dr. Selim Salti fundo el Instituto Salti, dedikado a la lingua i la kultura ladino en la Universidad Bar Ilan de Tel-Aviv.


Olive oil stains


By Dr. Selim Salti

Olive harvesting season will start soon. The preparations become more urgent with each passing day as the time for harvesting is very short. In our case, my son Moni is in charge of the people who will participate in the harvest.

This year, without the Arabs, who cannot enter the country, and without the possibility of finding Thai workers, I think we should ask for help from our loved ones to give us a hand to harvest the olives.

Furthermore, this year we will be using two new motorized vibrators that will shake the trees without much effort. The olives that fall on the ground should be collected in a very short time, a task requiring hands that I hope we will not lack.

To prevent the oil from becoming vinegary, the harvested olives should be squeezed within three hours after harvesting, another dilemma that we must address. I think we will start the harvest in mid-November.

The specialists are not optimistic about the new harvest. First of all, the oil production does not supply 50% of the demand, since the other half is imported from Europe, mostly from Spain, Italy and Greece.

These countries, which, in addition, control a large part of the local consumption, are a serious competition for Israeli producers. As we know, many of these producers, to be able to exist in the market, sometimes buy refined oil of inferior quality from the Europeans, which they mix with their virgin products to lower the cost.

In certain cases, the consumer, without realizing the quality and looking for a cheaper product, uses an oil that is not suitable even for candle wicks and is harmful to health.

To give you an idea of ​​the olive oil production in Israel as shown by the statistics, in 2010 the production was 10 thousand tons. This quantity doubled in 2019 and it is believed that it will surpass 25 thousand tons in the coming years. Israel is compelled to import olive oil and, although the prices in the world increase every day, the internal demand is substantial.

In order to minimize the price inc increase, the government reduced taxes on imports, which gives preference to oil from abroad, where the cost is financed in part by the exporting country. The Israeli producer does not receive help from the government and finds himself facing an unfair competition. Thus, some of the moshavim cut down their trees after suffering losses.

This is not my case since the virgin oil that we produce is only for my family and close friends, and it has the VOO label, which means it contains 100% pure olive oil. Being a small producer and an amateur, I do not need help from anyone.

But if the authorities in charge would like to seriously develop this agricultural industry and urgently make decisions to provide material and technical help in a short time, taking advantage of the capacity and the innovative potential we have, I think that in the coming seven years Israel will be able to supply itself entirely with quality olive oil and compete in the local market with Spain, the largest producer of olive oil in the world.

Our agricultural engineers, with their innovative skills, will create the necessary olive harvesting machinery that requires no workers, which will eliminate the need for Palestinian workers.

The current war, on the one hand, and last summer’s drought on the other, caused production to be low. A better result than last year’s is not expected. As a consequence of this, there was a 39% increase in the price per liter. If we add to this a sharp increase in prices of 7.6% of all oils worldwide due to the war in Ukraine, which is the largest producer of canola oil, we must expect that the prices in the Israeli market will increase even more.

Another current problem here is the protection of the workers or the volunteers who work in the north of the Galilee, where there are millions of olive trees. The government and local authorities must strive to protect them by sheltering them from drone or missile attacks. It is of primary importance to create shelters, otherwise they will not be able to work, which will further aggravate the shortage of olive oil.


In 2003, Dr. Selim Salti founded the Salti Institute, dedicated to Ladino language and culture, at Bar Ilan University in Tel-Aviv.


Translated by Daniel Santacruz


November 11, 2024.

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