POTENCIAL DISTRIBUTION OF OLIVE IN BRAZIL AND WORLDWIDE

ABSTRACT

Demand for olive oil has been increasing worldwide, especially in Brazil, increasing the need for expansion of planting area. However, in regions that are traditional producers, there isn’t more space, we need to seek new areas for planting in the world. In this study, we identified marginal areas for farming in Brazil, using ecological niche modeling, based on occurrence points raised in the producing regions of Europe, United States, Australia and Latin America (Chile, Argentina and Uruguay). It was used 346 georreferenced occurrence points and climatic data layers (mean minimum air temperature, mean maximum air temperature - in oC - and total rainfall - in mm) seasonal (spring, summer, autumn and winter) of the world, downloaded from the site of Worldclim. The data were organized and formatted in geographic information systems (GIS), using ArcGIS 10. Finally, we made maps with probability of olive trees in the world. It was also made a map just of South America, with the most suitable areas for planting olive trees.

Index terms
ecological niche modeling; olive oil; olive production in Brazil