Οlympia Health & Nutrition Awards 2017

The Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Food, Mr. Vasilios Kokkalis, attended the awards ceremony for the Olympia Health and Nutrition Awards for 2017, which took place on Thursday, May 11, at the Old Parliament building. The Deputy Minister awarded the Gold Award for the olive oil with the best health protection to Mr. David Georgios and the model Cypriot olive growing business with olive groves located on the green line that unfortunately still wounds Greece’s sister country, Cyprus.

In his speech, the Deputy Minister stated, “I am particularly happy that I was given the opportunity to attend an important awards ceremony that aims to highlight a national product such as olive oil, a product with a distinct identity and added value, thanks to its unique characteristics. This is the main reason why special praise should be given to the organizers of today’s event, which takes place in the context of the implementation of the Interreg Med ARISTOIL European Program of the University of Athens, the Peloponnese Region and the EGTC Efxini Poli.”

The main objective of the ARISTOIL program is to strengthen the competitiveness of the olive oil sector in the Mediterranean, and by extension, to increase the income of olive producers, through the development and implementation of innovative production and quality control methods that lead to the production of olive oil with enhanced health protection properties (regulation 432/2012 of the EU), according to the methodology developed by the research group of Professor Prokopis Magiatis.

Modern Greek farmers must claim similar goals, with the Ministry of Rural Development and Food helping them in this effort. The organization and training of producers, the utilization of economic tools such as the new Agricultural Development Program for 2014-2020, the production of a quality product, and the highlighting of its unique characteristics are the main axes for the productive reconstruction of the Greek countryside.

Targeted actions such as the development of a “cluster” of Mediterranean olive producers and businesses, the development of innovative methods for the detection of phenolic compounds in olive oil, the specialized training and support of olive producers for the production of high quality olive oil, the establishment of a group of producers, and the mapping of the respective areas constitute the mix which will lead to the achievement of the objectives and the success of the program.

With his presence, Deputy Minister Kokkalis honored and confirmed the historic importance of the announcement of the forthcoming foundation of the World Olive Center for Health, which is supported by Associate Professor of the School of Pharmacy of the University of Athens Prokopis Magiatis, Dr. Eleni Melliou, Professor Stefanos Kales, Professor Diomedis Logothetis, and Mr. Dan Flynn.

The announcement was preceded by the grafting of an olive tree from the sacred site of Pnyka with the Olympia variety originating from Ancient Olympia, symbolizing the beginning of a new era in the field of olive oil, in Greece and internationally.

 

Awards list