In the 17th century, Comino was covered in corn and the Comino tower was built from revenue the state received from the corn. Today Comino is almost barren.

In the early 1960s, when I first came to live in Malta, every single piece of Malta that wasn't built on was cultivated and had produce growing upon it.

At that time, the whole civilised world had a problem with the movement of manpower from the countryside to the cities, leaving the agricultural sector very short of workers. In the larger countries this was offset by the utilisation of machinery. Malta and Gozo were not so lucky, as the fields were so small and terraced that the use of machinery was very limited. The result was the abandonment of the fields, which today are being left to deteriorate and erode. Look anywhere in our sloping countryside to see exactly what I mean.

A Maltese businessman had a hobby. This hobby was the growing of olive trees, picking the olives and then pressing them to produce olive oil.

When Malta applied to join the European Union, this businessman thought that he could grow the olives, press the oil and sell the product as Maltese olive oil. This was however not possible because the only oil that could be called Maltese olive oil had to be made from olives that came from pure indigenous Maltese olive trees. A problem. But not a problem that couldn't be solved.

This businessman searched all over Malta to trace the indigenous Maltese olive tree and so far he has found three different types. He has sent cuttings from these trees abroad to test the olives and to have thousands of new trees sent back to Malta.

What the scientists found was that the olive oil from Maltese olives grown from indigenous Maltese olive trees had an above average level of phenol and antibodies when compared to other olive oils.

What does this mean? It means that the olive oil pressed in Malta from indigenous Maltese olives will fetch a premium price in the world market. The Maltese farmer would grow as many of these olive trees as possible, utilising all the abandoned terraced fields, and Malta would once again have a countryside full of lovely green olive trees, that were so typical of our landscape many centuries ago, and an olive oil industry that would rival any in the world.

I don't know who is the minister responsible for such enterprises and, quite honestly I don't feel it that important to know. What is however important is the fact that if I were this minister I would lean over backwards to help in every way possible this enterprising Maltese businessman who could do so much good for Malta, both in the business generated and in the re-embellishment of our environment.

Diamonds and olives have a lot in common. They are small, precious and, if treated properly with loving care, can be worth an awful lot of money, both to the provider and to the eventual owner. Olives could be Malta's diamonds and I personally wish Sammy Cremona the very best of luck with his olives and I hope he gets every bit of help from the authorities he very much deserves.