I've got to agree with Johnat. The yield is only of use to determine
whether you should invest money in harvesting and processing the olives.
If the yield is too low your costs will exceed your return. Yield is
subject to so many variables. Some growers seem to use it as an "I'm
better than you" factor. However the difference in variety, irrigation
methods, soil and nutrient conditions, climate and even processing can
all influence the % yield number.

I have also noticed that many growers use litres of oil divided by kilos
of fruit processed to get a yield figure. This is meaningless like
dividing oranges into apples. The correct way to calculate % is to
divide kilos of oil by kilos of fruit.

The information which is of use to the grower is how many litres (or
kilos) of oil did I get this year at what quality and how much can I
sell it for. Did my volume of oil increase from last year. Will it
increase next year. Is my farm commercially viable. If not, is it likely
to be viable at some time in the future as my trees mature.

For those who are not in business but do this as a hobby or for some
other reason these are probably irrelevant. But for the rest of us we
try to produce as much of the best oil we can so we can service our
customers and make a profit.

Andrew & Val Brown
Adelaide hills
South Australia