How to keep your money safe?

People generally know they are taking some risks when they buy stocks, corporate bonds and mutual funds. But during the financial stresses of the last few weeks, they've discovered that even seemingly safe havens became quite unpredictable.With institutions such as Washington Mutual failing, for example, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has been stepping in to make sure people receive money back when banks collapse.
But people aren't guaranteed to get everything they have had in banks. The FDIC has limits on the money they will return to people -- $100,000 for an individual, $100,000 per person in joint accounts, and $250,000 in individual retirement accounts.
Money market funds, too, used to be considered as safe as savings accounts. But no more.
You can't afford to make no-brainer decisions with money now, especially with the money you intend to keep completely safe.
A couple of weeks ago, a money market fund had its value fall below $1 per share and investors began to lose money. With investors rushing to pull billions out of the funds earlier this month, the government quickly stepped in and promised to make sure that people with money in the funds wouldn't lose money. The government is insuring the funds for a year.
But the protection isn't as far-reaching as many believe.
Some financial advisers think that any money put into a money market fund now has a government guarantee. But that is not the case, according to the Treasury Department. Rather, money that was in a money market fund on Sept. 19 is fully protected. An individual who adds money will only have protection on the original money.
This means investors must think carefully about the money market funds they are using. Some are riskier than others. If people pull money from one money market fund and put it into another, they will forfeit the protection they would have had if they'd stayed with the fund they were using Sept. 19.
The explosive environment lately has made some financial advisers cautious about handling the cash their clients need to draw on for short-term needs -- especially retirees, who are often advised to keep a year to two years of cash handy for living expenses.
Money market funds have been a favorite short-term savings place because they often pay slightly higher interest rates than bank savings accounts or bank money market accounts.
Now that it's clear that money market funds are less safe than once thought, Steve Weinstein, president of Altair Advisers in Chicago, is using funds that invest only in Treasuries.
In addition, rather than relying on only one money market fund, some clients are dividing their money into several to lessen the risk, Weinstein said.
Those using bank savings accounts and CDs are also making sure they don't rely on a single institution.
Through a program called the Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service, or CDARS, a person can have accounts larger than $100,000 and still receive FDIC protection. The person can deposit a large sum into a CDARS program at a bank, and then the program divides the money up into CDs at multiple institutions. For example, a person with $500,000 would have five CDs at five different banks, but have paperwork from a single source and full FDIC protection.
"It's all about diversification," Weinstein said. Given the current state of the financial system, it's difficult to anticipate risks, so spreading money into multiple accounts provides a level of protection.
Besides his cautious approach with cash, Weinstein is being careful with bonds.
Typically, investors have considered many municipal bonds as almost as safe as U.S. Treasury bonds. That's been especially true of general obligation bonds, or the bonds that states, cities and other governments pledge to pay with tax money, regardless of any stresses that might arise.
Currently, however, financial advisers are growing leery of municipal bonds too. With unemployment climbing and real estate values falling, cities and states are expected to have declining tax revenue.
The National Conference of State Legislators says many states will be facing financial pressures in 2009. The group estimates a $40.3 billion shortage in revenue to cover costs. Governments will be making cuts in expenses, and some already have been tapping rainy-day funds.
To protect investors, some advisers are selecting only general obligation bonds from states rather than cities.
Bruce Heyman, managing director of Goldman Sachs Private Wealth Management, has been using high-quality escrowed-to-maturity prerefunded municipal bonds. With such bonds, the investor is protected because U.S. Treasuries are put aside to cover the payments.
For investors who want safety, "make sure they are escrowed," Heyman said.
Of course, relatively safe municipal bonds -- like U.S. Treasuries -- are providing very little yield now. The municipal bonds Heyman likes may be yielding about 2.1 percent.
But Marilyn Cohen, president of Envision Capital Management in Los Angeles, warns investors to beware of seeking higher yields with money that must be safe.
"We are in the midst of a crisis, not the end," Cohen said. "It's ludicrous to seek more yield in the middle of a crisis."

Not all olive oil is as pure as it seems! money principle

Even before Rachael Ray coined her perky catchphrase “EVOO,” extra virgin olive oil’s popularity was skyrocketing. The international olive oil industry has become bigger and more profitable than the wine industry, according to Armando Manni of Manni Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The figures support his assertion – according to the International Olive Oil Council, the US imported 90,000 metric tons of EVOO in 1990. By 2006 that figure had risen to 240,000 metric tons.Nowhere is the industry’s growth more apparent than in the restaurant and retail sector. At the Four Seasons Silicon Valley, executive chef Alessandro Cartumini treats oil with a reverence usually reserved for a fine wine or liqueur: his menu at Quattro offers a variety of Manni olive oils for three dollars a pour. Shelves in the olive oil aisles of Whole Foods Markets are packed full with bottles, while customers at Draeger’s gourmet markets can select from over 70 olive oils.So which oil to choose? Do you buy the brand that claims to have won awards, or the oil that hails from the most alluring locale? Perhaps the bottle with the bonus pouring spout, the one that’s an olive-y green, or the sleek glass flask that matches your Method dish soap dispenser? Those who judge an olive oil by its bottle, take note: heat and UV rays break down some of the oil’s healthful properties, so don’t display it on the counter. Stash it instead in a cool, dark place away from the stove.At the recently opened The Olive Bar in Campbell, customers can sample up to 16 EVOO varietals. Proprietor Ed De Soto was a food broker for years, but wasn’t educated about olive oil until a year ago. “I had olive oil in my garage for two to three years. I thought rancid was a flavor,” he recalls.“Rancid products are pathogens and sources of free radicals,” says Mike Bradley, president of Veronica Foods, the De Sotos’ supplier. Free radicals contribute to aging, heart disease and cancer – things that polyphenols, a type of antioxidant found in good quality, well-stored olive oil, should fight and protect against. Polyphenols are a relatively recent discovery – in the past, the focus of olive oil’s health benefits was on how its monounsaturated fats help lower LDL, the bad cholesterol, without lowering HDL, the good one.Manni, who sells to some of the finest restaurants in the world, including Napa’s The French Laundry, is manic about polyphenols. He works with the University of Florence to analyze the best time to harvest his olives, pours his oils into 3.4oz bottles of dark, UV-filtering glass, and tops them with inert gas to protect these antioxidants. Polyphenol levels of 250mg per liter are considered high; Manni’s oils contain levels as high as 450mg per liter. These meticulously produced oils cost over $300 for 10 bottles.Veronica Foods, which produces Delizia olive oil, holds its oil in stainless steel tanks to minimize exposure and deterioration. The De Sotos then transfer the oil into stainless steel drums, and dispense it in dark glass bottles. Ken Manley, the head gourmet buyer for Draeger’s, lauds such methods. “The oil lasts so much longer. You can taste the difference.”While dark glass is better for the oil, many producers insist on using transparent bottles, often considered more visually appealing. “We buy some clear bottles because they sell quickly,” says Manley. “I’ve talked a dozen companies into changing their packaging to the dark bottle, but it’s a double-edged sword, because producers want to show off their oil color.”This, despite the fact that color not only has no bearing on the oil’s flavor, but can even be the sign of an inferior product. Some producers crush olives with leaves to make the oil greener. Bradley says with soybean oil fetching 40 cents a pound, compared with five dollars a pound for olive oil, unscrupulous producers may blend olive oil with soybean oil and green dye.So, unless you want to take home an extra virgin oil that’s about as virginal as Paris Hilton, be sure to read the label carefully. “Citrus Olive Oil produced in Italy” tells you nothing. Ideally, the olives were crushed with citrus, but it could just as well be older Italian oil infused with citrus to disguise the rancid taste. Or Tunisian olive oil blended with citrus flavoring and bottled in Italy. “It’s legal to put ‘Product of Italy’ if it’s the last country of handling,” explains Patty Darragh, executive director of the California Olive Oil Council (COOC).Bradley also warns buyers to be wary of misleading labeling such as “pure olive oil” and “light.” These products can consist of as little as five percent virgin oil, with the rest consisting of refined, inferior oil. As a result, the polyphenol levels are miniscule.“A lot of imported oils are mislabeled or adulterated,” cautions Darragh. “Currently there are no federal standards for imported oils, so it’s buyer beware.”The word “handpicked” on a label implies a superior, artisan product. Handpicked olives cost more ($500 per ton, versus $80 to $120 per ton for those picked by machine) and are better than the machines, which “bat the heck out of olives,” according to Albert Katz, whose Katz & Company makes the award-winning Rock Hill olive oil. But handpicking doesn’t guarantee good oil. “You can handpick and still screw up your olives if you don’t press right away,” he says.While deceptive labeling is common Bradley insists, “These frauds eriphery. What’s hurting the industry is the ridiculously low standards and lack of understanding by the public, which includes the retailers.”A good olive oil label should read like that of a fine wine: “Abbae de Queiles, 0.1 percent acidity, organic Arbequina olives, harvested November 2006,” with additional details such as “grown in the Navarra region of Spain, crushed within two hours of picking.”When you get past the bottling and labeling, be sure to taste the oil. The peppery tasting EVOOs tend to be higher in polyphenols. Just like wine, other variables can affect antioxidant levels and flavor, including terroir (climate, soil and altitude), dry farming, harvesting and storage, says Bradley.Once you get your chosen EVOO home, use it within a couple of months. “If you don’t have use-by dates, you get a false sense of how long the product will last,” said Manley.“A lot of olive oils are just sitting in a warehouse, but they need to be consumed within two years,” agrees Darragh.While there may be varying levels of quality, Bradley is adamant that good olive oil shouldn’t be too hard to find. “If your trees are healthy, you pick it on time at its peak of ripeness and you crush it in a timely fashion, it’s hard to make bad olive oil.”

Olive oil for love or money

California olive oil history dates back hundreds of years to the late 1700s, when the first olive trees were brought over from Spain. As the industry grew, olive trees became a common sight in Northern California and the Central Valley, and olive oil processing mills began opening to meet demand for the golden nectar.
According to Paul Vossen, UCCE farm advisor for Marin and Sonoma counties, California is now home to 11 olive oil processing mills, ranging in annual production size from 4,000 to 150,000 gallons each, as well as several smaller mills. "Production has been steadily increasing each year, except for 2000-01 when there was a very small crop," Vossen said. Since 1996-97, California olive oil production has increased from 123,000 gallons to 400,000 gallons in 2002-03.

This growth caught the attention of California wineries during the 1990s, and dozens began planting olive trees with oil production in mind. "Wineries account for about 12-15% of the state's annual extra virgin olive oil production," said Patricia Darragh, executive director of the Berkeley-based California Olive Oil Council (COOC).
Though she couldn't confirm the total number of wineries that are currently producing olive oil, Darragh said that more than two dozen have been certified by the COOC. "There is a dramatic increase in production by wineries, year over year," she said. "The industry overall is growing dramatically and many more wineries are becoming involved."
Thanks to the efforts of wineries like B.R. Cohn, Preston Vineyards, Joseph Phelps Vineyards and Wente Vineyards, high-end California olive oil is making a name for itself on the national gourmet food scene. But is producing olive oil worth the effort?
Climate, Soils And Care
Like grapevines, olive trees are not for the impatient. The trees must be planted in the right location, and tended properly. It takes three or four years for the trees to bear fruit, and the olives should be hand-harvested at the peak of ripeness (usually in October or November), avoiding any contact with the ground.
UC Davis is in the process of studying trial olive orchards in different parts of the state, to determine where the trees grow best. "Ideal growing conditions are deep, dry gravely soil, with good drainage," Vossen said. "A climate that does not get below 24[degrees]F that might kill the trees in the winter, nor temperatures below 30[degrees]F during the months of November and December that might freeze and ruin the fruit prior to harvest. Other than that, they seem to grow and produce well in the Central Valley and in cool coastal areas."
Profiting From "Liquid Gold"
Specialty extra virgin olive oils often sell for $20-50 per bottle--an amount that leads some people to believe it's a huge profit-maker. But before you start ripping out Chardonnay vines to plant olive trees, consider the cost of production.
"Profit on the North Coast is better for winegrapes at $2,000 per ton of fruit," Vossen said. "Olives on the North Coast are expensive to grow because of the high cost of land. The land parcels are small and the land is not as flat and less likely to be able to be harvested mechanically." Olive production tends to be more profitable for wineries in the Central Valley, Vossen added, where "land is cheaper, labor rates are a bit lower, water is cheaper, etc., and the land is flatter and better adapted to over-the-row mechanical harvest. Most olives are worth from $300 to $600 per ton. With yields of about 5 tons per acre and lower cost mechanical harvest, I believe there is a pretty good potential for the super-high-density production system."
According to Sharon Cohn, who handles day-to-day olive oil production at B.R. Cohn Winery with her husband Bruce, "It costs about $200 per gallon to get (the oil) into the bottle--it's like liquid gold." When asked to compare olive oil and wine production, Bruce Cohn commented, "Neither of them make any money. I don't know anyone who's making money in olive oil." So why does he do it? "I do it because I like it, and because the trees are here," he said. "And our tasting room visitors like it. We sell out of our oil every year."
Sharon said she truly enjoys the olive oil side of the business, and wishes that she and Bruce had started it earlier. "We could have started losing money even sooner!" Bruce added, with a laugh. "Unless you're doing it in a big way, you're not going to make money doing it. It's a labor of love, and a lifestyle issue."
Damian Parker, production manager for Joseph Phelps Vineyards, expressed a similar view. "We are trying to break even, it's more of a lifestyle thing for Joe (Phelps)," he said. "Joe wanted to diversify some of the farming on the ranch, and growing olive trees and making olive oil is very Mediterranean. Joe has an affinity for Mediterranean varietals and Napa's climate is very suited for them." Phelps planted 3.5 acres of olive trees in 1998, and added an additional acre in 2001. "Until you have mature trees, it's very hard to make any money. To date we have not."

For Lou Preston, owner of Preston Vineyards in Sonoma County, olive oil production is more than a labor of love. "But if we had to rely on the wholesale market for distribution the profit would disappear," he said. The oil is a brisk seller in the winery's tasting room, Preston said, thanks in part to its COOC extra virgin certification and last year's favorable Wine Spectator review.
Profits aside, Preston's olive oil also plays an important role in the winery's Mediterranean focus. "Our mission is to give our visitors an integrated farm-based food experience--wine, bread from the winery forno, cured olives, olive oil, pickles and fresh produce from the organic kitchen gardens," he said. "Everything is from our farm, everything is organically grown."

Livermore's Wente Vineyards has also managed to make a profit producing olive oil from the winery's century-old trees, according to sales and marketing president Carolyn Wente. "My grandfather used to make oil and cure olives until the 1960s, when the labor became too expensive to justify picking and processing," she said. "I began producing the oil again in 1986."
Wente's olive oil is sold in the winery's tasting room, and brokers distribute it on a limited basis to high-end retail accounts. "It sells very well," Wente said.
Getting Into The Act
If you're thinking of getting into the olive oil business, remember what your sixth grade teacher always said, "Do your homework." The following resources will help you save time, money and headaches down the road.
"Olive Production Manual"--This practical guide covers olive botany, orchard planning, orchard maintenance (including nutrient analysis, irrigation systems, pest control and crop management), harvesting and post-harvest processing. Available on the UC Davis Web site for $32: http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/merchant.ihtml?pid=299&step=4.
"Producing Olive Oil in California"--This pamphlet offers background and practical information for olive oil producers. Available for $7 through UC Davis. To order, visit the Web site: http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/merchant.ihtml?pid=548&lastcatid=149&step=4.
UC Davis Cost Analysis Study--Paul Vossen and his colleagues at UC Davis completed a study of olive oil production in February, 2004. View it on the university's Web site at http://coststudies.ucdavis.edu.
California Olive Oil Council--Created in 1992, the COOC's mission is to establish California as a source of world-class olive oil. For industry resources and information on the organization's certification program, visit the Web site cooc.com.
Oliveoilsource.com--This Web site includes a listing of U.S. olive oil producers, as well as statistics and information on starting an olive oil business.
RELATED ARTICLE: Wineries Press On
Despite its monetary challenges, wineries continue to devote time, money and passion to upscale olive oil production. Here's a look at what a few of California's best oil-producing wineries are doing.

Year Oil Production Began: 1990
Picking And Processing: The winery's grape management company harvests the olives. The crop is pressed at The Olive Press in Glen Ellen.
Acreage And Varieties: The Cohns have 10 acres of French Picholine trees, planted on the Olive Hill estate in 1875. According to Bruce Cohn, 1 ton of Picholine olives produces 27 gallons of oil (Mission produces 45 gallons per ton).
Oils: The winery offers three oils: Sonoma Estate Extra Virgin ($50/500ml); California Certified Organic Extra Virgin ($18/500ml); and California Extra Virgin ($18/500ml). The non-estate oils--about 4,000 12-bottle cases--are purchased under contract from growers in the Central Valley. Production for the Sonoma Estate oil is 125 gallons per year.

Notes: The Cohns are planning to open a culinary center at the winery in 2005, in which the winery's olive oils will play a central role.
Joseph Phelps Vineyards, St. Helena
Year Oil Production Began: 1998
Picking And Processing: The Phelps vineyard crew--about 14-16 men--harvests the olives. (If the olives haven't ripened before the crew goes home to Mexico in the winter, the picking is left to the remaining winery staff). The olives are pressed at McEvoy Ranch in Petaluma.
Acreage And Varieties: Phelps has 4.5 acres of olive trees, including the following varieties: Frantoio (70%), Pendolino (11%), Leccino (14%) and Maurino (5%). The winery also has a few Picholine trees and about 30 Mission trees on the Spring Valley ranch and at Backus.
Oils: Phelps' extra virgin olive oil sells for $20 per 375ml bottle. The winery produced 79 cases of the 2002 oil, and estimated bottling about 100 cases of the 2003.
Preston Vineyards, Healdsburg
Year Oil Production Began: Early '90s
Picking And Processing: The winery's vineyard and winery staff picks the olives, with the aid of pneumatic picking wands. The olives are pressed at Frantoio in Mill Valley and at McEvoy.
Acreage And Varieties: Preston began planting olive trees in the late '80s, and today has 1,000 olive trees. About 75% of the trees are Italian oil varieties, including Leccino, Pendolino, Frantoio, Casaliva, Grignano and Mauriolo. The winery also grows Manzanillo, Mission and Sevillano for curing and/or oil.
Oils: The 2003 Olio Nuevo ($25/500ml) is Preston's 10th vintage. The winery's largest harvest to date was 150 gallons, and Preston expects the number to peak at 650 gallons as the trees mature.
Wente Vineyards, Livermore
Year Oil Production Began: 1986
Picking And Processing: The olives are hand picked over a one-month period. Modesto-based Nick Sciabica & Sons cold presses the oil in small batches within 24 hours of picking.
Acreage And Varieties: French grapegrower Louis Mel imported and planted Wente's Lucque and Picholine trees in 1880. Wente's oil blend also includes Manzanillo, Ascolano, Mission and Sevillano varietals.
Oils: Wente produces about 200 9-liter cases per year of its Oro Fino Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil ($19.95/375ml).

T.C.
RELATED ARTICLE: Grapevine Nursery Adds Olive Trees
While other grapevine nurseries were expanding their offerings to include varietals like Syrah and Pinot gris, Santa Rosa's NovaVine chose to offer something different--olive trees. According to VP Dennis Black, NovaVine began selling Spanish olive trees in 1999. "We realized there was opportunity in olive oil," Black said.
Arbequina was the first variety NovaVine imported from Spain, followed by Mission, Manzanillo and four Tuscan varieties. Most of the trees are sold to landscapers, olive growers and wineries, Black said, and the wineries have shown particular interest in the Arbequina and Tuscan varieties.
"California wineries are definitely in the olive oil business," he continued. "They're taking it very seriously and a lot of serious effort is taking place. Wineries are doing more food and wine pairings and a lot of wineries have their own chefs and are doing cooking classes. Olive oil fits into this nicely."
Olive trees start at $15 for a 1-gallon size tree. For more information, visit the Web site novavine.com.
T.C.
RELATED ARTICLE: Napa Valley Futures Raise Nearly $1 Million At Premiere Napa Valley Auction
Months before the glamour and hoopla of the annual Napa Valley Wine Auction, national and international wine wholesalers, retailers and restaurateurs descended on St. Helena for the auction-before-the-auction: Premiere Napa Valley.
The eighth annual event, held Feb. 21 at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, raised a total of $987,200 to help support programs sponsored by the Napa Valley Vintners, official host of the auction.
Before the auction began, more than 500 trade and media attendees sampled unique barrel wines, primarily 2002 and 2003 reds created from special vineyard blocks, using innovative winemaking techniques. While most producers poured Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot wines, some chose to experiment with different varietals. For example, Ceja Vineyards poured an unusual blend of Merlot, Pinot noir and Syrah, while Sterling Vineyards and Flora Springs presented Malbec wines.
More than 270 paddle holders competed for 158 lots of Napa wine futures, and a total of 1,065 cases were sold to 60 winning bidders. The highest single bid of the day was $35,000 for a 20-case lot of Silver Oak Cellars 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
As was the case last year, the event's top bidder was Gary Fisch, owner of Gary's Wine and Marketplace in Madison, N.J. Fisch spent $203,900 on 20 different lots, including the five-case Shafer Vineyards and Stag's Leap Wine Cellars lots, selling for $28,000 and $21,000 respectively.Top Lots at Premiere Napa Valley 2004
Silver Oak Cellars $35,000
Shafer Vineyards $28,000
Joseph Phelps Vineyards $26,000
Pride Mountain Vineyards $26,000
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars $21,000
Viader Vineyards & Winery $18,000
Vineyard 29 $17,000
Beringer Vineyards $14,500
Duckhorn Vineyards $14,000
Lewis Cellars $14,000
Staglin Family Vineyard $14,000
Beaulieu Vineyard $13,000
Darioush Vineyard $13,000
Husic Vineyards $13,000
Spottswoode Vineyard & Winery $13,000
The auction wines are scheduled for private release, to the successful
bidders only, between 2004 and 2007.
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