25 centuries ago the Greeks planted the olive tree deep in our region. The olive has become one of the main ingredients of Provençal cuisine: tapenade (a purée of black or green olives), table olives and of course, olive oil.

Olive tree capital since the 18th century, Aix has kept its olive heritage alive and has transmitted the symbolic message of peace through this treasure of nature. There are over 2000 olive growers and close to 300,000 olive trees in Aix today.Collection is the first stage in the transformation of the
olive into oil. The olives are transported and deposited in the mill where they are washed in cold water before being put in the grinder which reduces them to a thick paste.

This paste is then creamed to a certain consistency and then spread over mesh made of plaited vegetable fibre which are then piled onto the base of the press.

Virgin olive oil is obtained solely by mechanical means. Pure fruit juice, it is not subjected to any chemical treatment. It takes 100 kilos of olives to make, on average, 20 litres of oil.

In Aix, the Festival of New Oil takes place a few days before Christmas, at the "Place de la Rotonde".