Sustainable olive growing aims to maintain farm productivity and olive oil quality while reducing environmental impacts, protecting natural resources and improving the long-term resilience of olive-growing areas.

This discussion invites olive growers, producer organisations, agronomists, researchers and other stakeholders to share practical experiences, tested solutions and good practices adopted in olive groves across the Mediterranean region.

Possible topics include:

• sustainable soil management;

• cover crops and reduction of soil erosion;

• efficient irrigation and water saving;

• precision irrigation and soil-moisture monitoring;

• balanced fertilisation and organic amendments;

• integrated pest management;

• reduction of plant protection products;

• protection of biodiversity and beneficial organisms;

• management of pruning residues;

• use of renewable energy and low-emission machinery;

• carbon-footprint reduction;

• climate-change adaptation;

• preservation of local olive cultivars;

• digital and precision-farming tools.

Questions for discussion

1. Which sustainable practices are currently applied in your olive groves or territory?

2. What environmental, agronomic or economic benefits have you observed?

3. Have these practices affected olive yield or oil quality?

4. What difficulties or additional costs were encountered during their implementation?

5. Which practices are easiest to adopt, and which require more technical or financial support?

6. Are there solutions that could be transferred successfully to other Mediterranean regions?

7. What type of training, technology or public support would help olive growers become more sustainable?

When replying, you may use the following structure:

Country and region:
Type and size of olive grove:
Practice adopted:
Problem addressed:
How the practice was implemented:
Main results and benefits:
Costs or difficulties:
Recommendations for other growers:

Participants are encouraged to describe both successful experiences and practices that did not produce the expected results. Sharing limitations and implementation problems is equally valuable, as it can help other growers make more informed decisions.

The contributions collected through this discussion will support knowledge exchange within the OliveOilMedNet community and help identify sustainable practices that can be adapted to different farming systems, cultivars and Mediterranean territories.

Olive growing is a key economic, environmental and cultural activity across the Mediterranean region. However, olive growers are currently facing a combination of environmental, technical and economic pressures that can affect productivity, oil quality and the long-term sustainability of their farms.

This discussion invites farmers, producer organisations, technical experts, researchers and other stakeholders to share the main challenges affecting olive cultivation in their territories.

Possible topics include:

• drought and limited water availability;
• climate change and extreme weather events;
• pests and plant diseases;
• increasing costs of energy, fertilisers, plant protection products and labour;
• labour shortages;
• soil degradation and loss of fertility;
• difficulties in adopting sustainable or precision-farming technologies;
• low or unstable olive and olive oil prices;
• limited access to technical assistance, training or finance;
• protection and valorisation of local olive cultivars;
• traceability, certification and market requirements.

Questions for discussion

1. What are the most serious challenges currently affecting olive growers in your area?
2. How have these challenges changed in recent years?
3. Which solutions or practices are already being adopted?
4. What are the main limitations of the existing solutions?
5. Which technologies, training activities or policy measures would provide the greatest support?
6. Are there good practices from your farm, organisation or region that could be shared with other members of the network?

When replying, you may use the following structure:

Country and region:
Type of farm or organisation:
Main challenge:
Effects on production, quality or costs:
Solutions currently adopted:
Main limitations:
Support or innovation needed:

Your contributions will help identify common and territory-specific needs across the Mediterranean olive sector and support the exchange of practical experiences and sustainable solutions within the OliveOilMedNet community.