Technological Innovation in the Traditional Olive Orchard Management: Advances and Opportunities to the Northeastern Region of Portugal

Abstract

In Portugal, the olive orchard is the most representative agricultural crop and one of the most impactful on the national economy. Therefore, a production structure accompanying the technological advances in this field would be expected; however, such a structure has not yet been realized, especially within traditional systems. Thus, taking northeastern Portugal as a case study, where a great expression of traditional orchards is visible, the following aspects are addressed within this paper: the region’s biophysical framework, the olive orchard’s environmental and socio-economic importance and its current management practices and associated pressures. As a result of that assessment, which demonstrates a low level of sustainability for traditional olive orchards, mainly in terms of economic viability, the most effective and simple solution is to act appropriately on factors that interfere with the crop yield, namely, irrigation and fertilization issues. With that purpose, a multiscale precision oliviculture system is also presented that is being developed in order to support decision making in traditional olive orchard management, aiming to obtain economically efficient productions based on eco-friendly cultural practices. Throughout the entire process, it is essential to ensure stakeholder engagement, in particular, olive growers, so that they recognize the effectiveness of potential measures that may avoid the reconversion/abandonment of the traditional olive production system.