The Olive Research Institute in İzmir: A Living Archive of Olive Biodiversity

This Monday, as part of our technical visit in Türkiye under the OASIS project, coordinated by the İzmir Commodity Exchange, we visited the Olive Research Institute in İzmir together with consortium partners and SMEs from Italy, Spain and Türkiye. The visit offered a valuable opportunity to see one of Türkiye’s most important centres for olive research, genetic conservation and sustainable olive production.

Located in Bornova, İzmir, the Olive Research Institute operates under the Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Its work covers the full scientific and technical spectrum of olive cultivation, including breeding and genetics, cultivation techniques, plant nutrition, plant protection, food technology and agricultural economy. This makes the institute not only a research centre, but also a strategic knowledge hub for Türkiye’s olive sector.

İzmir World & Türkiye Olive Gene Banks

İzmir holds a particularly important place in the global conservation of olive biodiversity. The İzmir World Olive Gene Bank, established within the Olive Research Institute, was initiated through an agreement signed in 2012 between the International Olive Council (IOC) and the Olive Research Institute. At the time, İzmir was positioned as the third world olive germplasm bank, following Córdoba in Spain and Marrakech in Morocco. Its creation added a vital eastern Mediterranean location to the global system designed to safeguard olive varieties against genetic erosion, disease, natural disasters and climate-related risks.

Today, the İzmir World Olive Gene Bank protects one of the world’s most valuable living collections of olive genetic material. The collection includes 364 olive varieties from 18 countries, ranging from France and Morocco to Greece and Chile, as well as 100 indigenous Turkish olive cultivars. In total, İzmir safeguards 464 olive varieties, making it a major global repository for olive biodiversity and a critical archive of Türkiye’s own botanical heritage.

The global network has continued to expand since İzmir joined it. In 2025, the International Olive Council recognised the olive germplasm collection in Chania, Crete as an international olive germplasm bank, bringing the number of international collections in the IOC’s global network to eight. These collections are located in Spain, Italy, Morocco, Türkiye, Israel, Argentina, Iran and Greece. Within this evolving network, İzmir remains Türkiye’s internationally recognised olive germplasm bank and one of the key global centres for conserving olive genetic diversity.

The importance of this work is growing as olive production faces increasing pressure from climate change, drought, pests and plant diseases such as Xylella fastidiosa and Verticillium dahliae. By preserving hundreds of olive varieties, the İzmir collection supports future breeding programmes, helps researchers identify more resilient cultivars, and contributes to the long-term sustainability of olive cultivation in Türkiye and beyond.

The institute’s role also connects directly with Türkiye’s broader olive-sector transformation. Recent public statements from Türkiye’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry highlight national efforts to support olive producers through incentive programmes, smart farming practices, artificial intelligence applications, digital pest traps and early-warning systems. Over the past 15 years, 14 new olive cultivars have also been officially registered and added to the national variety list.

In this sense, the Olive Research Institute in İzmir is much more than a technical research facility. It is a living archive of olive biodiversity, a national centre of scientific expertise, and Türkiye’s gateway into the international olive germplasm conservation network. Through the İzmir World Olive Gene Bank, the institute helps protect the genetic future of one of the Mediterranean’s defining crops while supporting a more resilient, sustainable and knowledge-based olive sector.

İzmir Olive Research Institute

At Olive Oil Anatolia, this mission resonates deeply with our own work. We aim to bring the added value of Türkiye’s remarkable olive diversity and its centuries-old olive oil culture to wider international attention. Through our platform and editorial content, we present Turkish extra virgin olive oils not merely as products, but as stories of land, climate, craftsmanship and heritage. By curating high-quality producers and highlighting the cultural richness behind each bottle, Olive Oil Anatolia seeks to help Turkish olive oil reach the global recognition and value it deserves.

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