Presented in partnership with My Smart Garden and Brimbank, Darebin, Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Merri-Bek, Wyndham, and Yarra Councils, Olives to Oil is an annual event run by CERES, bringing people together to harvest olives and have them pressed communally into delicious, local olive oil.

Background: CERES Olives to Oil is an annual community festival bringing people together to celebrate the importance of local food in our communities as well as recognising the wonderful heritage of diverse food cultures we enjoy. We also encourage people to harvest unused olives from backyard or neighbourhood trees and bring them to us as part of the community olive oil pressing. Once pressed into oil, this is given back to those who contributed.

Volunteering Objectives: To support the Festival team with collecting of olives and distributing of olive oil to participants.

Volunteer Shifts and Locations: This year we have four olive drop off dates at CERES Brunswick, Sunshine and Werribee. On drop off days, participants come along with their olives, get them weighed, and pop them into our crates to be sent off for oil pressing. There will then be two pick up dates in Preston and Werribee, where participants come along to collect their olive oil. We have morning and afternoon volunteer shifts available on each day. See details of dates, times and locations below:

Olive drop off - Northside - ALL SPOTS FILLED
Sun 5th May 2024, CERES Brunswick. Shifts: 10AM - 1PM or 1PM - 4PM
Sun 19th May 2024, CERES Brunswick Shifts: 10AM - 1PM or 1PM - 4PM

Olive drop off - Westside - ALL SPOTS FILLED
Sun 26th May, Bennet St Car Park Sunshine. Shifts: 10AM - 1PM or 1PM - 4PM
Sun 2nd June, Werribee, Werribee Park Community Farm. Shifts: 10AM - 1PM (ALL SPOTS FILLED) or 1PM - 4PM

Olive bottling day - ALL SPOTS FILLED

Friday 14th June, CERES Brunswick 10am-3pm

Olive oil pick up - Northside - ALL SPOTS FILLED

Sun 16th June, CERES Fair Food Preston. Shifts: 10AM - 1PM or 1PM - 4PM

Olive oil pick up - Westside

Sun 23rd June, Werribee, Werribee Park Community Farm. Shifts: 10AM - 1PM (ALL SPOTS FILLED) or 1PM - 4PM

Specific Tasks and Duties:

Olive drop-off days: Weighing, collecting and recording quantity of olives from people who bring them along

Olive oil collection days: Distributing olive oil and giving it to people who register to collect it

Olive oil bottling day: Assisting with bottling of olive oil into containers

Welcoming people and directing them

Helping to pack down the event at the end

Benefits:

Receive a bottle of delicious olive oil

Be part of local food-systems work in action

Be part of a vibrant, local food-focussed community event

Help turn otherwise-wasted olives into delicious local olive oil

Meet like-minded individuals

Training: Induction will be provided on the day you volunteer