Abstract
The cultivated Olea europaea L., or olive tree, is an ancient crop extremely relevant for the bioeconomy of Mediterranean countries, especially for Portugal. With orchard modernization, Portugal has the potential to become the third-largest producer of olive oil over the next decade. In this country, the main national variety is ‘Galega vulgar,’ characterized by an excellent olive oil quality, rusticity and tolerance to drought. Nevertheless, its production has suffered a reduction due to replacement by foreign varieties. The present narrative review offers an overall perspective of present gaps and challenges to the conservation and use of ‘Galega vulgar.’ Existing information about traditional and innovative olive production systems, and the importance of life cycle thinking approaches for a sustainable olive chain were synthesized, focusing particularly in the last 10 years. Furthermore, the olive molecular characterization advances and their breeding importance were also evaluated considering their application to this Portuguese variety. To ensure an efficient and sustainable exploitation of the ‘Galega vulgar,’ we propose that efforts should concentrate on the characterization of the existing variability and development of genotype to phenotype prediction tools, integrating detailed molecular marker genotypic and environmental characterization, to support better informed conservation and breeding decisions in a multi-environment context.
Highlights
Olive (Olea europaea L., subsp. europaea, var. europaea) is a multifunctional long-living Mediterranean tree species with an extraordinarily ancient history and tradition
Important socioeconomic changes in several Mediterranean countries led to significant technological improvement in olive cultivation, which increased the risk of genetic erosion on the traditional olive germplasm
This genetic erosion phenomenon is occurring in Portugal, especially affecting the main national variety ‘Galega vulgar,’
Summary
Olive (Olea europaea L., subsp. europaea, var. europaea) is a multifunctional long-living Mediterranean tree species with an extraordinarily ancient history and tradition. Europaea) is a multifunctional long-living Mediterranean tree species with an extraordinarily ancient history and tradition This crop holds an important role both for table olive and oil production and for shaping and protecting the regional landscape. Important socioeconomic changes in several Mediterranean countries led to significant technological improvement in olive cultivation, which increased the risk of genetic erosion on the traditional olive germplasm This genetic erosion phenomenon is occurring in Portugal, especially affecting the main national variety ‘Galega vulgar,’. Since high-yielding and low-vigor modern varieties, more suitable for mechanically harvested plantations, are preferred to the traditional varieties, the characterization and conservation of existing traditional varieties diversity is essential to ensure their sustainable use in the future [5] In this narrative review we searched international data bases for English-language articles, and national state technical reports and University dissertations (in Portuguese). A special emphasis is given to the ‘Galega’ variety, highlighting the existing gaps and future challenges concerning this variety conservation and use
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
