PARC, CIHEAM Bari – OliveCulture Scale-Up Project and the Olive Growers Association have signed a tripartite agreement to launch a structured olive hybridization and variety development program in Pakistan. The agreement marks a coordinated step in national olive research and development and establishes a framework for collaborative work among research institutions and the private sector.
The program will pursue controlled hybridization between Olea cuspidata (wild olive) and Olea europaea (cultivated olive) to drive genetic improvement and the selection of superior genotypes. By focusing on olive hybridization under organized protocols, the initiative aims to identify varieties that suit Pakistan’s varied agro-climatic zones and the needs of local growers.
This collaboration lays the groundwork for a nationally adapted olive variety program that bridges indigenous wild genetics with cultivated traits. Bringing research, institutions and industry together, the partnership seeks to strengthen Pakistan’s olive sector through coordinated breeding, selection and variety development efforts under the olive hybridization agenda.
