OUR STORY

  Vaga Olive Oil is our family business, dating back about 500 years. Our olive estate is located in the fertile lands of Beja in the northwest of Tunisia, with domain trees dating back to 1809. This land has been producing olive oil for as much as 3,000 years, through centuries of different civilizations which inhabited the land, including Romans and Carthaginians. The Roman stones that stand on our farm today signify the importance of our forefathers’ legacy and are a daily reminder of our purpose. Vaga Olive Oil was created to carry our family’s love of the olive tree with all the gifts it bears for future generations. Bechir Blagui’s Grandpa Bechir taught him how important it is to love the land and treat it with respect. He learned to love to work hard and to value the fact that the land will give you what you give it in return. This land is a sacred family heirloom which our family treasures passionately in our hearts. Lauren has lived in California most of her life and developed a strong culinary interest while growing up cooking with her dad, Patrick. She even worked as a sous-chef and personal chef at one point. Her union with Bechir was written in the stars, as the chances of the two of them meeting in Hollywood would seem far-fetched. But Bechir has lived in Hollywood 15 years, so he and Lauren decided to start a family of their own on the sacred land, and have moved to his home village to carry on Grandpa Bechir’s legacy and preserve the tradition while incorporating their own ideas. In this spirit, starting from just olive oil, we have added antipasti to our catalog from Bechir’s grandma’s recipe for tapenades, sun-dried tomatoes, Tunisian Tabil spice blend, harissa, and more to come. We aim to bring this love of our family tradition to a market near you so you can share it at your family table.