The olive trees of Jaén are a green sea with more than 580,000 hectares. In the valleys, in the hills, in the mountains, some 66 million olive trees grow more than 40% of the oil in Spain. About half irrigated.
In Jaén everything revolves around olive oil, economy, gastronomy, culture, tourism ...
Every two years EXPOLIVA is organized. Plantae is honored to participate this year. It is celebrated from May 15 to 18, 2019 and is the most important olive oil fair. The contest is called for the best extra virgin olive oil of the world.
Objectives of Expoliva 2019
Different forums will be developed such as:
- The olive grove and the environment: advances in the control and treatment of Xylella Fastidiosa and the impact of Climate Change on the olive grove.
- Food, health and olive oil.
- The Olive Industry, Technology and Quality.
- Improvement of the profitability of olive farms.
- Olive oil culture.
- Technology applied to the olive grove such as our humidity sensors.
- Innovations in the olive grove and innovative projects.
Regions that we highlight in olive trees of Jaén
Denominations of origin
Sierra de Segura with varieties Picual, Verdala, Royal and Manzanilla de Jaén.
The extra virgin oils are stable, fruity and somewhat bitter.
Its olive trees are in rugged terrain with difficult cultivation. The collection is done at many points by hand. Olive trees are traditional.
The Manzanilla variety is also used as a table olive.
Sierra de Cazorla with very fruity and slightly bitter extra virgin olive oil.
It is obtained from the olives of the olive tree (Olea Europea) of the variety « Picual » and the autochthonous variety « Royal «.
The olive trees are on rough terrain and are traditional.
Sierra Mágina with extra virgin olive oil from Picual and Manzanilla de Jaén olives.
They are fruity and slightly bitter.
The olive groves are irrigated by the Guadalquivir river basin.
The Manzanilla variety, as in other areas, is also used as a table olive.
Other varieties of the olive trees of Jaén
Without a doubt the variety par excellence of the olive trees of Jaén is « Picual » with 90% of the total. This variety owes its name to its pointed shape.
But there are other varieties as we have commented and with the new plantations some new ones are increasing.
- Arbequina in dry and irrigated fields, with intensive and suppressive cultivation, mainly from oil mills.
- Hojiblanca more in dry land than in irrigated land and is used for oil mills and tables.
- Arbosana that adapts very well to intensive and superintensive.
A special mention to the Marteña (picual) variety that owes its name to the Martos area and is one of the best for extra virgin olive oil. They make this region known worldwide.
Objectives of the olive grove of Jaén
At EXPOLIVA , every call is discussed about the need to create more intensive plantations, for the convenience of their tillage and for the expansion of production. Productivity growth is compared with that of other countries, for example Portugal that with an irrigation plan and the construction of the largest artificial lake in Europe, the Alentejo area is increasing productivity exponentially.
For this, it is necessary to group olive groves and plant new varieties such as arbequina and arbonasa that are more bush-like and adapt to this form of cultivation, especially in sensor-controlled irrigation.
Currently the irrigated areas are going to increase in the area high of the Guadalquivir with a large investment from the Junta de Andalucía.
The "sea of olive trees of Jaén" currently hopes to achieve recognition of being a World Heritage Site.
Oil production process
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