The transnational knowledge sharing meeting of the European Union project titled “University-Industry Cooperation for Production of High Quality Olive,” supported under the Erasmus+ Program Key Action 2 in Vocational Education, was held in Coimbra, Portugal. The meeting, hosted by Coimbra Polytechnic Institute, was attended by several key figures including Prof. Dr. R. Cüneyt Erenoğlu, Rector of Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University (ÇOMÜ); Prof. Dr. Ahmet Evren Erginal, Director of ÇOMÜ Graduate School of Education; Prof. Dr. Murat Şeker, Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture; Prof. Dr. Yasemin Kavdır; and Alper Altınok, Director of Ezine Food Specialization Industrial Zone.
In the first session of the meeting, after opening remarks from Prof. Dr. Vivina Carreira, project coordinator on behalf of Coimbra Polytechnic Institute, and other officials, Prof. Dr. R. Cüneyt Erenoğlu provided information about Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University’s Erasmus+ KA2 projects. Following this, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Evren Erginal, coordinator of the OLIVER project for ÇOMÜ, presented the project objectives, and Prof. Dr. Yasemin Kavdır shared the progress report of the OLIVER project with participants.
In the second session, presentations were given by Prof. Dr. Elsa Ramalhosa from Bragança Polytechnic Institute on “Olives from Trás-os-Montes, Portugal – merging tradition with innovation”; Dr. Susana Paixão from Coimbra Polytechnic Institute’s School of Health Technology on “Waste management in the context of circular economy”; João Pires from Bio4Plas on “Incorporation of olive kernel waste into plastics and bioplastics”; and Marije van denBoogaard, founder of Passeite & Evoo Sommelier, who also shared insights on high-quality extra virgin olive oil production in the Coimbra region.
Following a focus group meeting at Coimbra Polytechnic University, visits were made to cultural and natural heritage sites in the Abrantes region of central Portugal. Information was provided about Casa Anadia Olive Oil, produced in the traditional olive groves of Alferrarede covering an area of 100 hectares, with soils consisting of clay, limestone, and schist.
Subsequently, a visit was made to an olive oil extraction, storage, and packaging facility equipped with state-of-the-art technology in the Northern Industrial Zone of Abrantes, aiming to produce high-quality olive oil at low temperatures from a 250-hectare olive grove. The project team also had the opportunity to see the Mouchão olive tree, an ancient tree dated back 3350 years using dendrochronological methods.
