The olive tree, the olive grove, and its oil are fundamental pillars of Mediterranean culture, deeply rooted in Andalusia.
The immense forest of olive trees that shapes the Andalusian landscape, especially in the province of Jaén, is not only a beautiful landscape but also a source of wealth thanks to the oil it produces, along with other derivatives extracted from this almost miraculous plant. Aware of these values, a large number of organizations have launched a proposal for the Olive Landscapes of Andalusia to be declared a World Heritage Cultural Landscape by UNESCO.
The term “Cultural Landscape,” according to UNESCO, encompasses a variety of manifestations of interaction between humans and their natural environment. Cultural landscapes reflect specific sustainable land-use techniques and take into account the characteristics and limits of the natural surroundings in which they are established, as well as a specific spiritual relationship with nature. Protecting cultural landscapes thus contributes to modern sustainable land-use techniques and helps maintain or enhance the natural values of the landscape.
The proposal was promoted by the Diputación de Jaén, joined by those of Cádiz, Córdoba, Granada, Málaga, and Seville, the universities of these provinces, the Junta de Andalucía, as well as various foundations, agri-food cooperative organizations, farmers’ associations, and the Spanish Association of Olive Municipalities.
These entities are coordinated through an Institutional Commission, which also has a supporting expert committee and a drafting team for the candidacy supported by the Center for Landscape and Territory Studies.
Since then, support for the candidacy has continued to grow, both individually and collectively. More than 300 institutions nationwide have joined the project, including town councils, denominations of origin, mills, agri-food cooperatives, rural development associations, and other entities and social agents who have been invaluable in preparing the supporting documentation for the candidacy.
Finally, the Olive Landscapes of Andalusia were included in the Spanish Indicative List of World Heritage on January 27, 2017, under the Cultural Landscape category. The technical dossier supporting the candidacy has been submitted to the Ministry of Culture for review and potential submission to UNESCO.
The promoters of the initiative hope that by 2020 a decision could be reached, revealing the results of this ten-year effort that has produced a justificatory dossier of over twelve thousand pages, detailing why the Andalusian olive landscapes deserve this recognition. This process involves not only the Spanish National Committee but also international missions and expert members from other countries and regions, who will enrich the dossier.
The Value of Olive Landscapes
“Old olive trees thirsty under the clear sun of the day, dusty olive groves of the Andalusian countryside,” so Antonio Machado described them, as did Lorca and Alberti, and Miguel Hernández immortalized them in his "Andaluces de Jaén": “tell me in your soul, who, who planted the olive trees?”
The olive groves in Andalusia have shaped, and continue to shape, a unique landscape that provides life and culture to the rural areas where they are located. They form the basis of traditional, social, heritage, economic, gastronomic, touristic, and labor culture, giving rise to a particular way of understanding and feeling life and attachment to the land from ancient times through various stages of our evolution. In this way, the history of the olive grove is inseparably linked to the history of Andalusia.
We are talking about a forest composed of more than 70 million trees across over 1.5 million hectares, making Andalusia the world’s leading producer of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, accounting for 30% of total production, as well as 20% of table olives, constituting the main economic activity for more than 300 Andalusian municipalities and providing over 22 million workdays per year.
The landscapes of Jaén included in the candidacy are the mountain olive groves of Sierra Mágina, the Segura Valley, Hacienda La Laguna, and the Guadalquivir to Sierra Morena area, as well as the monumental olive estates of the lower Guadalquivir, the Acebuchales of Cádiz, the ancient olive groves of Málaga, the Lecrín Valley, and the Subbética Cordobesa, selected from among two thousand cataloged landscapes.
Currently, Spain has several landscapes declared World Heritage Sites, such as the Cultural Landscape of Aranjuez, the Cultural Landscape of the Sierra de Tramontana, Las Médulas in León, Monte Perdido in the Pyrenees, and the Palmeral of Elche.
What Would This Declaration Mean?
For the promoters, this recognition would be a real boost, increasing businesses dedicated to oleotourism and consequently raising visitor numbers. It would also enhance knowledge and appreciation of Extra Virgin Olive Oils in markets, encouraging their consumption, and ultimately helping Andalusian olive groves gain international recognition from a heritage, ethnological, and environmental perspective.
For the sector, if UNESCO declared the Andalusian olive landscape a World Heritage Site, all actors involved in the production of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and related activities would benefit economically. The distinction from this Paris-based organization would lead to positive measures such as increased EU agricultural policy support, better price protection, population retention in rural areas, and an outstanding international showcase. It would help to highlight the tradition and history of the product, the close link of Extra Virgin Olive Oil with the Mediterranean diet, and promote modernization of mills and irrigation systems. It would also encourage generational renewal, as olive cultivation guarantees livelihoods and supports the social environment, while preserving environmental sustainability through the maintenance of a significant forested area and environmentally friendly farming systems increasingly in use.
At Aceite de Jaén Online S.L., we support this initiative, which we hope will soon become a reality, and invite you to enjoy our Premium Extra Virgin Olive Oils from Jaén province, pressed from olives grown in these wonderful landscapes.
