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2008 Peace Oil Plans

First Quarter 2008 Progress Report

2008 Peace Oil Plans

Two factors contributed to a 24% increase in the price of olive oil from Sindyanna’s 2007 harvest. First, this is a low production year and supply is limited as olive trees have a cycle of alternating higher and lower yields every other year. Second, the falling value of the US dollar has made importing a lot more expensive.

Due to the price increase, Olive Branch Enterprises (OBE) is buying larger quantities of olive oil from Canaan Fair Trade (CFT) which, due to its larger size, is able to maintain a price closer to that of the 2006 harvest. 1400 liters of olive oil will be coming from CFT and 200 liters from Sindyanna as well as 200 from Green Action. Due to CFT’s consideration, Sindyanna and Green Action will be able to send their olive oil in CFT’s shipment container, saving a considerable sum on shipping.

As a result of this new apportioning of supply, this year’s Peace Oil will have a greener color and fruitier taste due to the dominance of the Nabali olives found in CFT’s olive oil.

The decision to keep the cost of procuring olive oil down was based on the need to avoid a second price increase in Peace Oil’s third year of sales. OBE will also be purchasing other items from Sindyanna: hand-made baskets, olive oil soap, carob syrup and za’atar. These Palestinian goods will be used to make gift baskets for sale at street fairs and other events. Long-term, OBE will strive to maintain an equal supply of olive oil from all three groups as long as conditions are conducive to a successful operation.

OBE hopes to contract with a local bottling facility in order to bottle the entire shipment of oil as soon as it arrives. This will ensure greater freshness for Peace Oil and give OBE more time to focus on marketing.

Another challenge facing OBE in its third year of operation: the continuing unpredictable supply of olive oil bottles. As strange as this may seem to the average consumer who sees store shelves lined with 1000s of glass bottles, it is actually quite a challenge to procure bottles of the type needed, at an affordable price and in a timely manner. This is especially true for the particular type of olive oil bottle being used and for smaller orders. To the manufacturers and distributors of glass containers, 10,000 bottles is small potatoes and OBE currently uses around 3,000 a year.

Over the next two years, OBE would like to expand the reach of Peace Oil into Whole Food Markets in the Northwest region as well as into the nine Puget Consumer’s Co-op stores in the Seattle area. Other stores are being explored in the Seattle area and beyond. The goal is to have 50 retail outlets buying directly from Olive Branch Enterprises by the end of 2009.

If you know of any investors, bottlers or other resources that could help with this expansion, please have them contact David Sokal, dsokal@peaceoil.net.