86 CULTIVAR ANALYSIS AND PROSPECTIVE STUDIES No. 35 Olive groves and olive oil a rate of growth far exceeding the global average, placing the country amongst the world’s leading producers and bringing it close to the top three. At the same time, olive oil exports have seen remarkable growth, multiplying several times over in both volume and value, and recently exceeding one billion euros annually, highlighting the sector’s growing competitiveness in international markets. The Alentejo plays a central role in this transformation. Currently, the region accounts for the bulk of national olive production. In 2024, Portugal produced around 1.34 million tonnes of olives, of which more than 1.1 million tonnes came from the Alentejo, demonstrating the region’s central role in the national olive sector. This significance reflects a combination of several factors: the availability of irrigation, the size of the farms, the adoption of modern technologies and the growing integration between agricultural production and the processing industry. The development of olive groves in Alqueva is linked to a significant level of private investment. The costs of establishing modern plantations vary, on average, between around 10,000 and 12,000 euros per hectare, to which are added other indirect costs associated with the development of agricultural holdings. Taking into account the area already planted, it is estimated that the cumulative investment in new olive groves in the Alqueva region amounts to over 750 million euros, and could reach 850 million euros when machinery and ancillary investments are included. This figure does not include the cost of purchasing or leasing the land, nor the investments made in the associated agro-industry, namely modern olive mills and processing plants, where the amount invested is estimated to be between 400 and 500 million euros. It can therefore be estimated with some certainty that, within the Alqueva catchment area, the total cumulative investment in the olive oil sector may already exceed 1,300 million euros. In addition to direct agricultural investment, there has also been strong development of the associated agro-industry, with the installation and modernisation of high-tech olive oil mills. The Alentejo region currently hosts a very significant proportion of these industrial units, many of which are located within the Alqueva catchment area, thereby strengthening the integration of the sector and the capacity for local processing of production. This process of agricultural modernisation was also accompanied by a significant influx of foreign capital, particularly in the early stages of irrigation development. Spanish investors played a decisive role in introducing intensive and technologically advanced models of olive cultivation, establishing some of the first large-scale modern farms in the region. Figure 2 – Area of vaseolive groves(blue) vs. hedgerow olive groves(green) 2015–2025 (ha) 60,000 53,49 9 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Over time, Portuguese farmers have acquired technical knowledge and experience in managing these production systems, and now account for the bulk of investment in olive cultivation. This development demonstrates the capacity for knowledge transfer and the consolidation of an increasingly competitive agricultural business sector. 49,911 44 088 37,630 31,121 32,640 33,949 32,876 32,760 30,067 24,295 29,230 22,687 24,463 26,395 26,288 15,429 23,486 22,485 6,930 3,671 197
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