وحدة زراعة الزيتون, تكنولوجيات زيت الزيتون والبيئة

In the sphere of processing, traditional methods need to be replaced by more modern techniques ensuring better production, cheaper end products, improved quality, and environmental protection.

Lastly, in the marketing area, IOC technical action is tied up with economic action and is aimed at ensuring regular international trading in olive oil and olives and preventing and controlling fraud and adulterations.

The IOC tackles these challenges by implementing a global technical cooperation scheme hinged on a range of activities.

The increased focus on environmental issues is having a profound impact on the policies implemented by organisations, including the IOC which has incorporated such issues into its action strategies in response to the concerns of society about the protection and conservation of the natural environment. Moving one step further, a new concept of sustainable development has emerged, defined as development which « meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs ».

The economic development of agriculture has to take into account every aspect of environmental compatibility by opting for an agricultural model which makes prudent use of natural resources, protects the global ecosystem and generates economic prosperity and balanced social development.

ECOSYSTEMS LIKE THE OLIVE GROVE ARE PART OF THE SOLUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE

A fundamental scientific basis

A sink for greenhouse gases is defined as any process, activity or mechanism that absorbs or eliminates one of these gases, or one of their precursors, from the atmosphere, and is able to store it. The idea that such a sink was related to climate change was introduced at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992.

There is enough scientific evidence to support the claim that the olive grove offers a positive CO2 balance, meaning it absorbs more than it emits.

As experts and their research have proven, agriculture is the only sector capable of both producing these harmful emissions and extracting them from the atmosphere. Certain agricultural ecosystems, in particular woody crops, are able to extract CO2 and store it in permanent vegetal structures as well as eventually transferring it into the ground, increasing the content of organic material and permanently storing the CO2.

Many prestigious, international studies have demonstrated the potential agriculture has to create carbon sinks.

The studies conducted by Sofo, Mota, Villalobos, Rodríguez and Nleto highlight the important role that cultivating olive trees plays in CO2 sequestration. Selecting the right production system, density of the plantation and using sustainable agricultural practices can significantly improve carbon sequestration in biomass and soil.

THE OLIVE GROVE IS A SUSTAINABLE STRATEGY AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Scientific and sectorial basis
Consumers today are more and more incentivized to buy products with the least environmental impact. Environmental impact is now the third most important criteria consumers look to, after quality and price. This is thanks to changing attitudes about climate change, the biggest threat to sustainable development.

The agricultural sector is responsible for almost 140f greenhouse gas emissions around the world (IPCC, 2014). However, this statistic does not take into account the important role that agriculture plays as an ecosystem capable of extracting carbon from the atmosphere and fixing it in the soil, in particular in the case of woody crops.

For the olive crop, there is enough scientific research (Sofo, A., et al. 2005; Mota et al., 2010 y Villalobos et al., 2013; Rodríguez, M., et al, 2011; Nieto, O.M., 2011) showing that the olive tree is capable of sustainably fixing CO2 from the atmosphere in the soil, proving that the olive tree offers a carbon positive way of fixing more CO2 than it emits, therefore acting as a carbon sink.

In 2012, motivated by the need to demonstrate and recognise the carbon sink potential of the olive tree and the important role it can play in the fight against climate change, the International Olive Council set up a group of experts to create a method for calculating the carbon balance of olive oil. The group works within the framework of the European Commission’s Simple Market for Green Products Initiative, within the Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR) for olive oil, working together to achieve this goal and move towards integrating carbon balance in the report on the carbon footprint of olive oil.

In 2015, a tool was created for calculating carbon balance based on international standards and scientific publications. The IOC also took part in COP22 in Marrakech in 2016 to show the world the positive impact of olive oil production.

Continuing this work, the study empirically shows the carbon balance of olive oil, evaluating the potential scenarios for the main producer countries that represent almost 950f production worldwide.

These activities entitle courses, seminars, internships, expert missions and others and organised in response to IOC members’ needs.

The goal is to increase the number of professionals whose profile meets the growing demand for technical specialists in olive growing and olive oil technology.

Members shall ensure protection in their territory for geographical indications within the meaning of article 22, paragraph 1 of the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) relating to the olive products, in accordance with the applicable international rules, procedures and undertakings, in particular article 1 of the TRIPS Agreement.

Members shall, upon request, exchange information on the geographical indications that are afforded protection in their territory, with a view, in particular, to strengthening their legal protection from any practice likely to affect their authenticity or mar their reputation.

Members shall be empowered to adopt initiatives designed to inform consumers on the specific characteristics of the protected geographical indications in their territory and to add value to such indications, in accordance with the applicable legal provisions.

The IOC developed with its Members three World germplasm collections for the development, research, safeguarding and enhancement of genetic olive resources.

These collections objective is the establishment, conservation and management of the olive varieties with a view to the rational, objective utilisation of the plant material held in the collection and the data generated by it for the benefit of the scientific community and development officers in the member countries of the International Olive Council.

Furthermore, the IOc has supported 22 countries in the establishment of their national collections in order to preserve the autochthonous resources.

These world collections and national germplasm banks will surely be a future source of material for the establishment of a certification system.

With this aim and in order to support the banks in the authentication and sanitisation of their plant material the IOC is developing the THOC (TRUE-TO-TYPE AND HEALTHY OLIVE CULTIVARS) project.

Expert groups can take the form of technical groups, working groups, technical boards, ad hoc groups, electronic working groups or pilot groups, according to factors such as the skills of the people concerned, the institutions they represent, geographical distribution, etc

The Meetings of such groups can also be open to observers from governmental and non-governmental organisations and institutions the Council has strong ties with or has established international collaborative relations.

Expert groups may be focused in different subject matters like gene sources of olive trees, environmental conservation and sustainable production, geographical indications, etc..

At present, the following technical handbooks are available:
– Olive pest and disease management;
– Mechanical harvesting of olives;
– Olive oil quality improvement;
– Table olive processing;
– Olive pruning;
– Olive and olive oil terminology.

INTERACTIVE TECHNICAL GUIDES
– World catalogue of olive varieties order
– Production techniques in olive growing download
– Olive nursery production and plant production techniques
– Code of good practice for the sustainable development of olive orchards in areas characterised by fragile ecosystems