The cultivation of olives in the Cilento district has a long and noble tradition. Its origins go back to the period of the ancient Magna Grecia colonisation and the successive occupation by the ancient Romans. Historical tradition holds that the Focesi, a refugee people of Greek origin, were the first to introduce the Pisciottana, the oldest variety of olive. The variety was originally grown in Pisciotta (hence its name) which is part of the Cilento commune. 
       The chief feature of the Cilento countryside is its olive groves which have long been the main, and sometimes the only, resource of the local people. The olive has thus become part and parcel of local community life. Cilento is now home to the celebrated American nutritionist Keys, author of the Mediterranean Diet and a great champion of the benefits of olive oil which reduces cholesterol, improves the functioning of the cardiovascular system and, with its array of phenols, protects the heart. The growing and treatment of the olive encompasses sixty-two communes in the southern part of the province of Salerno, all of them located within a protected wildlife park. 
       Olives must be picked by hand or machine before December 31th, and pressed within two days of their harvest. The output per hectare may not exceed 110 quintals, and the oil yield must not exceed 22 percent. The oil is green or straw-yellow in colour. Its taste and scent are fruity though it also contains bitter and peppery tones. Acidity may not exceed 0.70 percent.

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