The IOC has a packed schedule for the 116th session of the Council of Members and World Olive Day, organised in collaboration with the Diputación de Jaén.
The topic of the International Conference of the olive sector was dedicated to sustainability, quality and health.
Executive Director Abdellatif Ghedira opened the event alongside Francisco Reyes, the President of the Diputación de Jaén, and Julio Millán, Mayor of Jaén, this year’s hosts of the plenary session. Next on the podium were Khalid Al-Hanifat, Chair of the IOC and Minister of Agriculture of Jordan.
Pierre Bascou, Director for Sustainability and Income Support at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, gave a presentation on how the EU is promoting a more sustainable olive sector.
Marcos Nájera Sánchez, from the Sub-Directorate General for Food Quality and Sustainability of the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, presented Spain’s new quality standards for olive oil.
Juan Bautista Barroso, Director of the University Institute of Olive Research (INUO) at the University of Jaén (UJA), presented the joint UJA and IOC website on Sustainability.
Roberto García Ruiz, head of the Ecology Unit at INUO, talked about sustainability and the Mediterranean olive grove, while José Eugenio Gutiérrez Ureña, from SEO BirdLife, outlined the objectives of the Olivares Vivos project, a model of olive growing and biodiversity.
Kamel Gargouri, Director of the Olive Tree Institute (Tunisia), spoke about good practices for managing olive groves sustainably in the face of climate change, and Salvador Ruiz Plaza discussed harmonising olive oil tasting panels.
The final part of the conference was devoted to olive oil and health. Fernando Lopez Segura presented the CORDIPREV study, and José J. Gaforio, Head of the Health Unit at INUO, discussed the effects of extra virgin olive oil on metabolism and the immune system as well as on gut microbiota compared to other edible oils.
Ali Haj Mbarek, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Olive Oil and Table Olives, closed the event with a presentation on the history of this key partner of the Council of Members.
Created just 30 years ago, the Committee provides a forum for olive companies to express their views and share their practical knowledge to help the Executive Secretariat identify effective solutions to the sector’s problems.
