Navarra’s Aceite Artajo Marries Cutting-Edge Tech with Centuries of Olive Oil Heritage

It’s slow, but we’re result very loyal shoppers,” Urzaiz said. To fine-tune its modern production techniques, the estate conducted an extensive trial with more than 70 olive varieties, ultimately selecting 14 of them for the new groves. “The ones best suited to the local environment and capable of producing top-quality oils were chosen,” Urzaiz pointed out, including Arbequina, Arbosana, Koroneiki, Manzanilla Cacereña and Arróniz.

Among the more recent experiments is the planting of Lecciana olive trees, a cross between Leccino. Arbosana, developed for resilience in a changing climate. “For now, it represents a small area, and we planted it because it seems a promising variety for producing quality green fruity oils, and this is what we are looking for in Artajo,” Urzaiz told reporters. Today, Artajo cultivates more than 250,000 olive trees on 250 hectares.

However, adopting organic cultivation and production methods has come with a cost. “Challenges are increased labor. Costs,” Urzaiz stated. “There is a popular belief according to which ‘organic’ is the same as ‘abandoned.’” “It is quite the opposite. Additionally, they have installed more than two dozen wooden nest boxes to attract birds and bats that help control pests naturally.

Terrace farming, cover plantings and pruning residues protect soil structure and moisture while curtailing erosion. Going to Urzaiz, the olive trees capture carbon year-round, and vegetative cover improves soil organic matter, contributing to a negative carbon footprint.

Artajo has also adopted modern technology from the outset of the new cultivation. Today, climate stations and real-time moisture sensors enable smart drip irrigation. “We rely on technology and precision agriculture to optimize resources such as humidity sensors. They tell us the status of each irrigation sector on the farm in real time,” Huguet explained.

The estate is also using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to monitor the conditions of the olive trees across the estate. The cooling system for Aceite Artajo’s tank room is powered by solar panels, helping uptick the negative carbon footprint of the company’s olive oils. (Photo: Aceite Artajo) Such monitoring supports precision agriculture interventions such as irrigation and fertilization.

It can in addition show early signs of stress, allowing a prompt response. Water drawn from the nearby Lodosa canal is stored in reservoirs and used strategically to ensure the correct amount of water for each tree.

Olive pits fuel a biomass boiler that supplies heating and hot water to the mill and other facilities. “We also generate solar energy to pump irrigation and refrigerate the cellar,” Urzaiz explained. Such technology as well strengthens the holding’s efforts to adapt to climate change , which tends to impact the volume of yields. “In recent years, we’ve seen our harvests seriously compromised, whether due to extreme heat during flowering, periods of drought or rather extreme storms ,” she pointed out.

Offering guided olive oil tastings is among the various tourist activities offered by Aceite Artajo to help improve consumer knowledge about olive oil. (Photo: Aceite Artajo) With several olive oil tourism initiatives, the estate offers visitors opportunities to explore olive oil production, learn how to appreciate the taste of olive oil, and deepen their understanding of quality and polyphenols . Going to Urzaiz, consumer education is essential for the growth of the olive oil industry. “Right now, there’s still a lot of outreach work to be done,” she said. “Spain consumes a lot of olive oil, but many people still don’t know what extra virgin means.” At Los Llanos, visitors can book guided tours, tastings, express visits or picnics among the olive trees.

Motorhome travelers can stay overnight. “We’re on a long road and part of oleotourism is raising consumer awareness about our ‘treasure,’” Urzaiz concluded.