Olive Grove Debuts as Weather Warms in England

Enlarge David Stewart-Smith

Mark Diacono, a former environmental consultant, planted the first olive grove in England on his small farm in Devon, in the southwestern region of the country. He hopes to produce England's first home-grown olive oil next year.

David Stewart-Smith

Mark Diacono, a former environmental consultant, planted the first olive grove in England on his small farm in Devon, in the southwestern region of the country. He hopes to produce England's first home-grown olive oil next year.

A small-acreage farmer has taken advantage of the warm weather in southwest England by planting a crop usually seen in the balmy Mediterranean — olives.

Mark Diacono doesn't look like a revolutionary as he digs into the dark English earth. But in a small way, he's starting an agricultural revolution at his Otter Farm. He's planting pepper trees on the 17-acre farm in Devon, right next to the farm's main attraction, Britain's first olive grove. Diacono hopes to press the first English olive oil next year.

For Diacono, it's not just an entrepreneurial opportunity. He says he's also helping to reduce carbon emissions from the trucks and planes that are needed to transport farm products from the place they're grown to the place they're sold and eaten.

Climate change is affecting other crops as well. In Surrey, south of London, another iconic Mediterranean fruit is soaring: grapes. One Surrey vineyard has won awards for its sparkling wines, beating competitors from France, Australia and South Africa.