The Regional Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Carmen Crespo, attended the inauguration of the XXI edition of Expoliva, International Fair of Olive Oil and Related Industries in Jaén, in which a total of 134 entities from Andalusia are participating. "This event fills all Andalusians with pride and reaffirms Jaén as an international olive oil centre", said Crespo, who underlined the value of this meeting as a way of "putting possibilities and measures for the future on the table" that allow "optimism for a sector that is fundamental to the future of Andalusia and, especially, of the province of Jaén".
Among others, together with Carmen Crespo, the President of the Provincial Council of Jaén, Francisco Reyes; the Spanish Government delegate in Andalusia, Pedro Fernández; the Mayor of Jaén, Julio Millán; the Tunisian Ambassador, Fatma Omrani, and the Executive President of the Fundación del Olivar and Territorial Delegate for Agriculture in Jaén, Soledad Aranda, also took part in the opening ceremony of the fair.
Expoliva 2023, which is being held until Saturday 13 May in Jaén, is an unbeatable showcase for the quality of Andalusian production and, at the same time, an exceptional forum for discovering the latest innovations in research and technology linked to olive oil. In total, this year the fair will host 230 exhibitors, including 115 companies from Andalusia; four Regulatory Councils for quality designations of origin for extra virgin olive oils in Jaén (three Protected Designations of Origin - PDOs - and one Protected Geographical Indication - PGI); in addition to 15 Andalusian institutions and associations linked to this sector. In addition to exhibitors from other parts of Spain, organisations from other countries such as Argentina, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Turkey are also taking part.
Among the stands visited by Carmen Crespo is the 144 square metre exhibition area managed by the Regional Ministry of Agriculture through the Andalusian Agricultural and Fisheries Management Agency (Agapa). This institutional stand, located in the central area of the main pavilion of the Reciento de Ferias y Congresos de Jaén (Ifeja), hosts the exhibition of extra virgin olive oils and other products protected by Andalusia's differentiated quality figures and also serves as a stage for audiovisual projections that disseminate the excellence of Andalusia's olive oil offer.
The 21st edition of Expoliva is made up of three different areas dedicated to the exhibition of products and services, bringing together companies from all over the world with great prestige in this sector, and also to the organisation of the Scientific-Technical Symposium, where, as the Regional Minister pointed out, "the contribution of extra virgin olive oil to health" is addressed.