“I am pleased to communicate that today Italy has achieved great and deserved success through the recognition by the COI, International Olive Oil Council, from the collection of CREA , which International collection of olive germplasm of the COI network. I thank the CREA and MASAF who have supported the painstaking, patient and highly specialized work of the research center for years" he declared Enzo Perri (in the picture), Director of CREA Olive-growing, Fruit-growing and Olive-growing, on the occasion of the official recognition of the collection of CREA olive germplasm, as “International collection of the International Olive Council network – IOC”, during the 118th session of the Members of the International Olive Council (Plenary session of 118th session of the Council of Members), which took place today.
The CREA collection, the only one in Italy to boast this recognition, is the largest national collection of olive germplasm, second, after Spain, for the number of olive tree varieties in the world. It's about a heritage of agrobiodiversity, extended over two areas (Mirto Crosia and Rende) both in Calabria, and composed of 600 varieties, of which 200 are authenticated and common to the Spanish collection.
Together with those of Morocco, France, Turkey, Argentina and Israel, the CREA collection is at the forefront in the study of germplasm and in the search for tolerant or resistant genotypes, in response to external enemies, such as Xylella fastidiosa and Verticillium Dhaliae and climate changes, such as an increase in average winter temperatures, drought and unexpected meteorological events (hail, fog and unseasonal frosts) which are affecting global olive production.
The network of international COI Collections will make it possible, in the coming years, to better understand the agrobiodiversity of the olive tree, the winter cold requirement of the plant and to select those varieties capable of tolerating the reduction of winter cold - which is already negatively affecting the flowering - and therefore to ensure the production of olives, despite the current increase in temperatures.
