The main gaps currently found in commercial olive cultivars worldwide are a shortage of cultivars (for both oil and table olives) adapted to a changing climate; cultivars or rootstocks that confer drought tolerance; oil olive cultivars suitable for super-high-density orchards designed for mechanical harvesting; and table olive cultivars suited to mechanical harvest.
The Israeli olive breeding program focuses on the introduction and development of cultivars adapted to changing climatic conditions, including high-quality oil cultivars for mechanical harvesting, table cultivars suitable for mechanical harvest, and cultivars/rootstocks suited to drought conditions.
All of this is aimed at developing outstanding future cultivars that can serve olive growers in Israel and worldwide and improve the profitability of olive farming. Several excellent cultivars have already been developed in this breeding program and are widely grown in Israel and around the world. We continue to work on and develop additional cultivars that address the future challenges of agriculture in Israel and globally.
