The Montes de Toledo Oil Protected Designation of Origin has held its III EVOO Quality Forum at the headquarters of the Toledo College of Pharmacists, focused on health and the Mediterranean Diet, where the beneficial properties of extra virgin olive oil have been highlighted and the importance of consuming it to prevent diseases and lead a healthy lifestyle.

The event began with the speeches of the presidents of the Montes de Toledo PDO, Gregorio Gómez; from Eurocaja Rural, Javier López Martín; and of the College of Pharmacists (COF) Toledo and secretary of the Council of Pharmaceutical Colleges of Castilla-La Mancha (COFCAM), Javier Jimeno.

Subsequently, the main presentation of the forum on "Mediterranean Diet and Immunonutrition" took place, by Dr. Rosa María Casas Rodríguez, postdoctoral researcher and head of the Cardiovascular Risk, Nutrition and Healthy Aging group at IDIBAPS, associate professor at the University Barcelona and scientific coordinator of the Mediterranean Diet Foundation and Coordinator of the Master of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Nutrition, Chronic Diseases and Healthy Aging.

During his speech, Casas explained why it is recommended to consume about 50 ml., That is, about five tablespoons a day of EVOO, a product that is at the top of the pyramid of the Mediterranean Diet, the eating pattern that presents the greater scientific evidence and that in 2010 it was included by UNESCO in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

To argue this statement, the doctor has used the PREDIMED study, which has shown that the Mediterranean Diet supplemented with olive oil and nuts reduces the risk of heart attack and cardiovascular disease by 30%, the leading cause of death in the world among people at risk of suffering from classic risk factors such as hypertension, diabetes, impaired glucose levels, cholesterol or smoking.

For this reason, he has highlighted that including EVOO in our diet, in addition to being sustainable and being part of our heritage due to its high level of antioxidants, plays a fundamental role in strengthening the immune system, preventing cardiovascular diseases, different types of cancer, improving metabolic syndrome and fight dementia and even depression.

Likewise, Olegario Aguado, the technician of the General Directorate of Food of the Community Board of Castilla-La Mancha, has presented the guarantee mark "Campo y Alma" , which has just been promoted by the Community Board, to encompass the products with Protected Designation of Origin or Protected Geographical Indication of the region, in order to convey an image with which the consumer can identify unique quality products from Castilla-La Mancha on the market.

The provincial delegate of Agriculture in Toledo, Jesús Fernández, has praised the work of the producers and farmers that he has defined as “resilient, for withstanding in this last year the fluctuations in prices, the complexity of tariffs, the pandemic that put into risk the campaign and sales, the consequences of the storm Filomena and the shortage of labor in the current campaign.”

In addition, Fernández has emphasized that in Castilla-La Mancha “we have the best olive oil in the world, it is part of our way of living, and we have to believe it and tell it to the world, promoting it to sell it outside our borders and get closer to new consumers ”.

Source: Mercacei