On 21 November, the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM) together with the International Olive Council (IOC), and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) co-organised the event "30 Years of the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid" at the CSIC headquarters in Madrid to commemorate World Olive Day 2024.

World Olive Day 2024 aims to raise awareness about the importance of preserving the cultural heritage of the Mediterranean diet, recognising its significance not only for human health but also for sustainable food production in the context of global challenges such as climate change. In a world facing the challenge of feeding a growing global population in a healthy and sustainable way, the Mediterranean diet - with olive oil as an essential ingredient - is more relevant than ever.

This event was a tribute to the pioneers and organisations whose work has had an impact on the preservation and advancement of this Mediterranean cultural heritage for the benefit of the health of humanity. These efforts, building on the earlier pioneering work of Professor Ancel Keys and his ‘Seven Countries Study’ and led by world-renowned institutions such as the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health-Department of Nutrition and the World Health Organization in collaboration with Oldways Preservation & Exchange Trust, culminated in a series of conferences and papers that established the “Healthy Traditional Mediterranean Diet Pyramid,” recognised worldwide. Groups of experts developed and presented the International Conference on Mediterranean Diets in 1993, a follow-up conference in 1994 and a series of scientific articles published in special issues of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 1995 and 1997, which awakened international interest in this culturally rooted, plant-forward nutritional patern, changing the course of global nutrition research and public health orientations

The event’s opening featured key speakers, including Spain’s Secretary of State for Agriculture and Food, María Begoña García Bernal, and Iran’s Deputy Minister for Horticulture, Mohammad Mehdi Boroumandi, alongside representatives from the organising institutions: Ana Castro, deputy vicePresident for Knowledge Transfer at CSIC, Jaime Lillo, IOC director and Teodoro Miano, CIHEAM Secretary General.

Teodoro Miano, highlighted during his address that “the Mediterranean diet is more than a healthy eating pattern; it is a tool for promoting sustainable food production and consumption. It embodies a culture and lifestyle that strengthens connections between producers and consumers through its emphasis on harmony, social interaction, moderation, and the use of locally sourced ingredients”. Miano also spotlighted olive oil, particularly Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), as not only a nutritional treasure but also a symbol of cultural heritage and environmental sustainability. Addressing the region’s unique challenges, such as climate change and resource pressures, he emphasized the Mediterranean Diet’s capacity to promote resilience, sustainability, and equity.

Raúl Compés, director of CIHEAM Zaragoza, led the scientific and technical session featuring some of the world's prominent public health experts in the field of the Mediterranean diet such as Walter Willett, Antonia Trichopoulou, Frank Hu, Miguel A. Martínez-González, Greg Drescher, and Enrique Martínez Force.  Compés pointed out that “although this diet has a millennial old tradition, it was not properly recognised until a group of leading nutrition scientists, public health experts and food and cultural scholars began to investigate the patterns of traditional Mediterranean diet in the 1960s”.