Arizona republican., 1921-07-03

InlS IS SLOIy Ol OllteS-uOl tAS pretty and indigestible green ones stuffed with red peppers and geomet- rically arranged in a slim glass con tainer which usually gives the one artistic touch to a desert picnic-but the rich, tasty, chocolate brown beauties which have. come to be staple article of American diet and which are never so fine in flavor. so large in size and so well-prepared as when they come to the dinner table from a Salt River valley orchard through the medium of Salt River valley packing house.
 This story of olives is also to be story of one of the local institu- tions which has made a scientific study of the olive and It's possibilities and which has therefore developed a product which compares more than favorably with that of any other es- tablishment of its kind in the world the Gregg Olive company, whose plant is located at 1109 South Central avenue. In the list of home products the olive ranks perhaps first because of it's natural superiority when grown under Arizona skies and because of the methods which. especially in the plant of the Gregg company, have been evolved to make it not only the best of relishes but the best of foods. The story of the can of olives bear l ing a local trademark begins at the 1 tree. All the olives processed by the Gregg Olive company are grown in l the Salt River valley, the canning season running from October Is to | February Is. During that period the | company will produce 1,500 cases, or approximately 40 tons of processed olives and about 5000 gallons of the | pureSt and finest olive oil to be had. 1 Olives Hand Picked
 The olives are hand-picked, so that no bruised fruit vii go to the factory. even when it Is to be compressed into hoil At the plant the olives are sorted by hand and washed thoroughly, after which the processing begins. It Is to be noted here that during the pro- cessing at the Gregg company's plant the olives are stirred not by hand but ! by a new compressed air system which does not bruise them and which does away with old and unsanitary | methods.
 The olives are treated first to a I've process which lasts from three l to six hours. This takes the bitter ness from the fruit. The lye is then washed out. the water being changed repeatedly and the fruit being con stantly aerated. When the last traces of the lye have disappeared the olives are placed in a light salt solution. after which they are graded for size and packed in boiling brine in tins, when they are cooked and ready for distribution.
 The product of the Gregg Olive company is sold generally throughout the state, and also in West Texas and Colorado. with smaller shipments being made to various eastern states
 In manufacturing the oil the olives are passed first through a blower which removes the dust. leaves and other foreign matter. after which the whole fruit Is put through a grinder and then through a hydraulic press
 The press at the Gregg Olive com pany is one of the best in the west
 exerting a pressure of 5000 pounds to the square inch
 The average yield of oil Is 3S gal
 Ions to the ton of fruit. In some
 years the average has run as higf as 42 gallons to the ton of fruit. a. , in the l919-1920 season-an averag,
 as high as that in any olive -gorwint district in the United States.
 "Ripen" the Oil
 After the oil Is compressed the pull . and oil Is pumped into settling tanks
 where it remains only long enougl
 to let the water in the mixture settle
 when it is drawn off. The oil Is thel
 run into other tanks. where it re
 mains until the pulp comes to tn
 top. when the oil proper is draine'
 away. The oil now is ripened for ! year, being changed from tank to tam every two months during this period At the end of twelve months it 1 7 ready for Altering and bottling. Tn
 factory employs about 30 persons dur t ing the olive season.
 n The olives of the Salt River valle, y according to Miss Jane Gregg, presi V dent of the Gregg Olive company, ar d of a superior quality. and are con e sidered better than the best of Cali