At Wildly Virgin, sustainability isn’t a marketing slogan. It’s woven into every decision we make — from the way we select producers to the way we bottle, package and ship every drop of oil.
Organic and Regenerative Farming
Selecting our producers is one of our most important jobs at Wildly Virgin. Partnering with producers who farm organically and regeneratively is not only good for the planet, but leads to better quality olive oil, as our recent Gold Medal at the New York International Olive Oil Competition is a testament to.
Here are some of the characteristics we look for in our producers:
- No synthetic pesticides or herbicides: All of our producers use only natural pest management techniques. For example, in the Alentejo region, Virgulino Neves uses a natural clay to spray on his olive leaves in the summer to keep olive flies away.
- Mechanical or manual weed control: None of our producers use chemical weedkillers. They either use ground covers with manual mowing, or some like Joaquim Moreira have animals grazing in between trees. This has the added benefit of adding natural fertilization (a regenerative super power)
- No till farming and composting: All or our producers use natural compost, typically made on site through mixing other plant clippings with pomace the solid output of the pressing process. Using rich compost allows the farmers to not require any tilling, and maintains the rich microorganisms ecosystem in the soil. This also helps with carbon sequestration as the carbon is pulled out of the atmosphere and stored in the healthy soil.
- Water conservation: Olive trees are naturally fairly drought tolerant, but all of our producers manage their own water supplies either through lakes on their properties or self-sustaining wells. Water management is a huge problem in Spain, where the droughts of the past few years have led to a steep drop in production and higher olive oil prices globally.
Organic certification is a very expensive and laborious process in Portugal. While some like Joaquim Moreira are certified organic, most small farmers can not afford to.
Wildly Virgin Bottle, Spout and Packaging
While the olive oil is the star of the sustainability story, every element of our bottling and packaging has been thought through to maximize our sustainability footprint.
Every Wildly Virgin bottle is crafted from 100% Post Consumer Recycled (PCR) glass. While some might find imperfections in our bottles, we see them as perfect.
We use cork containers and cork pour spouts because cork is one of the most sustainable materials on the planet. Harvested without ever harming the tree, cork forests help support biodiversity and absorb massive amounts of carbon dioxide.
Our cork and metal spouts are designed to be reused bottle after bottle — a small ritual of respect, built into your kitchen.
Finally, from the boxes that cradle your olive oil to the kraft paper that protects it — every material we use is recyclable.
Wildly Virgin uses cork whenever possible, one of the most sustainable materials in the world
Never Plastic
As we've made clear, every decision we make is an attempt to honor both the earth and the integrity of our olive oil. That’s why you’ll never find our oils packaged in plastic.
The environmental cost is too high. Most plastics are never truly recycled, and plastic production continues to pollute ecosystems and accelerate climate change. Choosing recycled glass and natural cork allows us to tread more lightly on the planet we love.
The health risks are too great. Research increasingly shows that microplastics can leach from packaging into food, posing unknown long-term health risks. Recent studies have found an alarming amount of microplastic in the brain.
The flavor deserves better. True extra virgin olive oil is delicate, vibrant, and alive. Plastic packaging can allow oxygen, light, and even chemical compounds to degrade the oil, dulling its brilliance before it ever reaches your table. Perhaps this isn't a big deal for run of the mill olive oil, but great olive oil deserves better.
Sustainability Is Tradition
In truth, sustainability isn’t new. It’s an ancient way of living that honors cycles of renewal. It’s how Portuguese olive growers have farmed for millennia — and it’s the spirit we work to preserve in every bottle of Wildly Virgin.
