Mission and Vision
INUO’S mission is to carry out fundamental, strategic research in the field of olive groves and olive oils; it develops cutting-edge science to transform and improve the olive/olive oil sector and its socioeconomics and environmental status by transferring knowledge to relevant sectoral stakeholders. Its focus and strategy are to provide international, interdisciplinary scientists with the facilities to undertake sustainability-based, coordinated, cooperative research.
In line with its philosophy, INUO aims to attract and engage national and international talent, and to be a reference centre from the training of scientists and technicians in all fields related to olive groves and olive oils, and to transfer relevant knowledge to the olive/olive oil sector, and to society in general.
The research undertaken at INUO has influenced the incorporation of innovative technologies that have improved products, crops, and processes, and contributed to sustainability in the field of olive groves and olive oils. These actions were supported by INUO’s strategic areas of research for these years, which were as follows:
(1) Generation of high impact knowledge about olive groves and olive oils.
(2) Development of new technologies and tools to increase the sustainability of olive groves and olive oil.
(3) Development of new products and processes in the olive/olive oil sector.
(4) Examining the behavior of the olive oil market and the agents in the agri-food chain.
These prioritize areas of research, describe INUO’s research approach over the last decade and the key elements of the Institute’s current concerns, and has been pivotal to analyze the weaknesses, strengths, threats, and opportunities of the olive oil sector in order to define a conscious strategic planning for the next few years based the SWOT analysis included in the previous section.
INUO has established prioritized research areas to pursue over the next four years to develop cutting-edge tools and knowledge to achieve the objectives in its axe strategic of knowledge generation.
These areas are focused to respond to the needs of the sector and are consistent with the INUO’s priority areas of research that were aligned with those defined last year at national and EU levels. Our final goal is to prepare the institute’s human and structural resources to achieve its scientific, technological and knowledge transfer objectives, in a near and middle term future.
The prioritized areas of research are as follows:
1. ECO-SUSTAINABILITY OF OLIVE GROVES.
2. FINDING SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE-INDUCED STRESS.
3. DIGITISATION, AND TECHNOLOGY-BASED DEVELOPMENT OF NEW SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS AND PROCESSES IN THE OLIVE GROVE SECTOR.
4. ADD VALUE TO, AND INCREASE THE COMPETITIVENESS OF, THE OLIVE GROVE AND SUSTAINABLE OLIVE OIL SECTOR IN HEALTH, CONSUMPTION, AND SOCIETAL TERMS.