OBJECTIVES

Objectives:

  • Objective 1:
    Preservation and optimisation of olive cultivation and olive oil production

  • Objective 2:
    Highlighting the history of olive products, their place of origin and their characteristic properties

  • Objective 3:
    Promotion of all aspects of olive cultivation and its potential, such as the development of olive tourism in the Mediterranean

  • Objective 4:
    Preservation and rediscovery of the lost flavours and aromas of the gastronomic tradition and the Mediterranean diet

Our goals are:

To contribute to the strengthening of the Mediterranean identity through knowledge and promotion of olive-growing regions and olive products and to help these regions to strengthen their economic and social activity.

To promote the cultural and scientific aspects of olive cultivation and cultural tourism on the theme of olive & olive oil civilisation.

To encourage the creation of documentation centres, thematic museums and the organisation of events linked to the world of olive cultivation and Mediterranean cuisine.

To organise seminars and studies on the quality of olive oil in relation to healthy nutrition, the preservation and promotion of the gastronomic tradition of Mediterranean countries.

To organise Mediterranean festivals focusing on the olive tree, in order to give the public the opportunity to discover the olive tree in all its dimensions and to raise awareness of the need to protect not only the natural landscapes, but above all the cultural landscapes of the olive tree, its history and the long tradition found throughout the Mediterranean.

To encourage the creation of tourist itineraries in olive-growing areas, turning a simple walk into a tour of the world of the olive tree.

The objective of the Network is that the agreements signed with its members will not remain just a piece of paper, but that they will provide substantial assistance through the transfer of know-how, experiences and good practices and attract interest at international and European level for the protection and promotion of quality olive oils and the enhancement of rural development.
This will be achieved through the transmission of the cultural specificities, history and centuries-old traditions found throughout the Mediterranean and practised by producers and local communities.  And there is already a possibility:
The declaration of the olive oil heritage of the olive oil producing regions of the Mediterranean, as a UNESCO Heritage of Humanity.   It is not something that is related to the protection of the countryside, in the geographical sense, but to the promotion of the heritage, history and long tradition of olive products found throughout the Mediterranean.

Enrico Lupi, Founder and 1st President of Re.C.O.Med.