Company Profile

Our company is located near the picturesque seaside town of Kolymvari, in the northwest part of Crete and 24 km from Chania. It is a family-run business which was founded in 1980 and deals solely with the production and standardization of extra virgin olive oil, olive oil of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Kolymvari Chanion Crete and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) Chanion Crete  and organic olive oil. Kolympari SA olive oil is produced from the koroneiki olive variety which have been harvested for centuries from olive groves in the Kolymvari region.

Production

We have managed to produce an unalterable olive oil that maintain all its constituents, its golden green hue, its fruity aroma and the flavours from the freshly harvested fruit. This is a result of the short time between harvest and oil processing.

Olive oil extraction is done in our modern olive processing plant from the healthiest olives shortly after harvest solely by physical means under strictly controlled conditions in low-temperature (up to 27°C) with the minimum required time for mixing (about 30 minutes).

Stainless steel tanks are used for the storage and transportation of olive oil according to the terms of Directive 93/43 on the hygiene of foodstuffs.

Our annual production of extra virgin olive oil reaches 5,000 tonnes.

Packaging & Standardization

Standardization of our olive oil is done in a modern, built to high standards, fully automated production and packaging plant.

Here we can process and fill glass bottles of 250ml up to 1lit and have the capacity to bottle 1500 bottles per hour, and metal containers from 500ml up to 5 litres at a capacity of 800 5litre containers per hour.

The standardization unit has been certified and operates in accordance with the EN ISO 22000:2005 standard ensuring the consumer a product of excellent quality and nutritional value.

Quality

Our company’s main goal is to maintain a standard for olive oil that satisfies the requirements of customers and consumers in terms of quality, variety, safety and hygiene of the final product. Our credo is that the responsibility for enforcing this commitment towards the standard of quality and safety lies with the employees of the company through their properly conducted duties and their relationships with our clients. Our principles regarding quality and safety are the foundation to our commitment to quality.

Product safety for our company goes beyond simply producing a safe product of certified quality. Safety and quality mean respect towards consumers, employees and partners thus eliminating the possibility for non-compliant products.In this context, each factory worker is committed to:

  • In compliance with food safety system that identifies, evaluates and controls the risks associated with safety to all stages before and after the production and distribution of products,
  • the application of Greek legislation on product safety and rules of good industrial practice,
  • the production and storage of quality products, satisfying the requirements of customers,
  • providing high quality services that meet the needs and expectations of our customers,
  • to establish strategies for the safety and quality of our products in the annual business planning process,
  • to establish annual objectives of safety, quality and environmental responsibility on both individual and unit level for all our activities,
  • Ensure the continuation of our performance on product safety and quality through the implementation and certification of food safety management in accordance with the standards ISO 22000: 2005,
  • in confirmation of the effectiveness of safety management systems and quality products by using internal but also external control procedures,
  • In our effort to ensure that our suppliers feel the same commitment to product safety and checking the materials that provide by the help of checks and inspections of incoming products.

The commitment of KOLYMPARI SA to safe management of finalized products within the limits prescribed by law, in the whole range of activities and functions, is a commitment of all employees and an integral part of their daily work.

The implementation of the Quality Assurance System ISO 22000:2005 in combination with constant quality checks, chemical analysis from certified chemical laboratories and the laboratory of the State, as well as the sensory evaluation by an accredited olive oil testing panel, contribute to the production of an olive oil with excellent quality and nutritional value.

Contract Farming

Our company since 2011 in collaboration with the Department of Rural Development of the municipality of Chania, created the first olive oil of contract farming with a certificate of authenticity and quality. This application according to the contract that exists between the group of producers, our company and domestic and international businesses, ensures the safe and steady sale of the product. In this way producers ensure the absorption of the product with a constant price, and businesses have the best possible provision of a quality and economical product.

Our company continues the successfully implement of the program of contract farming , which began working with 30 certified olive producers and the number is increasing annually , because we support the work of the farmers and we encourage them to improve the conditions of production and finally have the better quality of their product. In this way we offer the consumer a quality extra virgin olive oil, a solid quality and an “identity” with the result the consumer to know the origin of the products that consume .