The olive tree is one of the most important oil-producing crops in the Mediterranean region. However, olive growers face many challenges due to intensive agriculture applications, land degradation, biodiversity impoverishment and functionality loss. In this context, the EU-funded SOIL O-LIVE project will implement a set of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary projects. The aim is to diagnose the environmental situation of olive grove soils on a broad scale. The project will target the most significant areas of olive production in the Mediterranean region. SOIL O-LIVE will analyse the impact of pollution and land degradation on olive groves’ soils, investigate the relationship of soil health status with the quality and safety of olive oil, implement effective soil amendments and ecological restoration practices, and define rigorous ecological thresholds for healthy European olive groves.
After more than fifty years of intensive agriculture application, the environmental situation for many olive groves across the Mediterranean Region is quite dramatic in terms of land degradation, biodiversity impoverishment, functionality loss, which may have already impacted on the quality and safety of olive oil, one of the most important commodities produced in Europe.
Through the implementation of a series of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary WPs, this project will perform the first rigorous diagnostic of the environmental situation of olive groves soils at a broad scale, considering the most important areas of olive production at the Mediterranean Region and its relationships to olive oil quality. Soil O-live aims (i) to analyse the impact of pollution and land degradation on soils from olive groves in terms of multi-biodiversity, ecological function at different levels of organisation and scales; (ii) to investigate the relationship of soil health status with quality and safety of olive oil; (iii) to implement effective soil amendments and ecological restoration practices that promote manifest soil biodiversity and functionality enhancements in permanent Mediterranean olive orchards across its native range of distribution, that should be translated to improvements in olive oil quality and safety; (iv) to define rigorous ecological thresholds that allow to implement future clear norms and regulations in order to design a novel certification for healthy soils in European olive orchards.
Project ID
Funding period
1 January 2023 - 31 December 2027Total budget
EU contribution
Funding programme
Call for proposals
Type of action
Type of stakeholder
Project contribution to Mission Soil’s:
Specific objectives
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1. Reduce land degradation relating to desertification
Not targeted -
2. Conserve and increase soil organic carbon stocks
Targeted -
3. No net soil sealing and increase the reuse of urban soils
Not targeted -
4. Reduce soil pollution and enhance restoration
Targeted -
5. Prevent erosion
Targeted -
6. Improve soil structure to enhance habitat quality for soil biota and crops
Targeted -
7. Reduce the EU global footprint on soils
Not targeted -
8. Increase soil literacy in society across Member States
Partially targeted
Operational objectives
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1. Build capacities and the knowledge base for soil stewardship
Not targeted
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2. Co-create and upscale place-based innovations to improve soil health in all places
Partially targeted
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3. Develop an integrated EU soil monitoring system and track progress towards soil health
Partially targeted
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4. Engage with the soil user community and society at large
Targeted
Innovation hotspots
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1. Carbon farming
Not targeted
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2. Soil pollution and restoration
Targeted
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3. Soil biodiversity including the microbiome
Targeted
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4. Circular economy solutions
Not targeted
Cross-cutting dimensions
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1. Business
Targeted
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2. Digital
Not targeted
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3. Territorial
Partially targeted
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4. International
Not targeted
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