On June 26th, 2023 the OLEAF4VALUE EU project, hosted two insightful, industry & research focused workshops on biomass valorisation where experts and stakeholders from the field gathered to exchange their knowledge on success cases on the bioeconomy. Organisations such as the University of Florence, Martin Luther King University at Halle-Wittenberg, BIOPLAT, Natac, NIZO, participated as key speakers.

R&I Workshop

During the R&I workshop, Prof. Maria Camilla Bergonzi from the University of Florence (OLEAF4VALUE partner) had the opportunity to present their role and latest results to the academic audience:

Micro/Nanoformulations to improve technological performance of olive bioactive compounds.
In vitro evaluation of influence of optimized formulations on solubility and permeability of olive bioactive compounds and olive leaf fractions.

Following up, Dr. Christian Bütcher, representing Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, presented their results on C. elegans as a model organism for the study of natural compounds being a well established model organism to investigate effects of phytochemicals.

To conclude the session, Torsten Scheithauer from NIZO Food Research presented advancements on how the extracts from olive leaves modulate gut microbiota composition and show protective effects on the intestinal barrier function.

Industry Workshop

During the Industry focused workshop, Alba Ramos, Project Manager at Natac (OLEAF4VALUE project coordinators) introduced Natac’s mission, values, and objectives, as well as their role in the project. One of Natac’s main tasks is coordinating actions to find the best market access routes for the selected OLEAF4VALUE developed bioproducts as well as carrying out market studies and analysis of the sector’s needs.

Following up, Margarita de Gregorio, BIOPLAT (Spanish Platform ‘Biomass for the Bioeconomy’) coordinator, presented challenges for biomass valorisation in the sector. Their goal is to consolidate the sustainable use of biomass as a source of energy, fuels and bio-based products, promoting regional, national and international cooperation in the field of bioeconomy. During the presentation, Margarita introduced the IRODDI project, OLEAF4VALUE sister project which will use biorefinery approaches including the synthesis of new products obtained from biomass that will compete with their fossil-based counterparts.

Lastly, the coordinator of GEN4OLIVE (Mobilization of Olive GenRes through pre-breeding activities ensuring information availability for end users) project: Hristofor Miho, another OLEAF4VALUE sister project, presented the project’s latest developments and work plan progresses which include the characterisation of a large number of cultivated and wild genotypes under common protocols, the promotion of the efficient conservation of olive genetic resources, the development of efficient markers and techniques to accelerate breeding, among other results.