The appearance of olives in Puglia dates back several thousand years; olive stones have been found incorporated into rock from the Neolithic period, therefore giving us evidence of the existence and use of this resource among the peoples who settled in the region 10 thousand years ago.

Cultivation of Puglia olives grew more widespread with the first Phoenician and Greek navigators and subsequently with the Romans and Arabs who, thanks to the fertility of the soil, the climatic conditions and the geographic position of natural harbours in Puglia, found it the ideal place to propagate olive plants and take them to other regions of Italy.

Olive growing in Puglia reached its height during the 5th century A.D. with the Benedictine monks who, applying their rule of “ora et labora”, gave a strong boost to the cultivation of the olive plant: they transformed extensive wooded areas into olive groves and created a love among the people of Puglia for the cultivation and production of “green gold”. This activity has continued, with the same enthusiasm, right up to the present time and has put the region at the forefront among all the regions of Italy both in terms of its surface area given over to olive groves, and of the production and quality of its oil.