In the last decades, the demand for molecular tools for authenticating and tracing agri-food products has significantly increased. Food safety and quality have gained an increased interest for consumers, producers, and retailers, therefore, the availability of analytical methods for the determination of food authenticity and the detection of major adulterations takes on a fundamental role. Among the different molecular approaches, some techniques such as the molecular markers-based methods are well established, while some innovative approaches such as isothermal amplification-based methods and DNA metabarcoding have only recently found application in the agri-food sector. In this review, we provide an overview of the most widely used molecular techniques for fresh and processed agri-food authentication and traceability, showing their recent advances and applications and discussing their main advantages and limitations. The application of these techniques to agri-food traceability and authentication can contribute a great deal to the reassurance of consumers in terms of transparency and food safety and may allow producers and retailers to adequately promote their products.

Background: The olive tree is a typical crop of the Mediterranean basin where it shows a wide diversity, accounting for more than 2,600 cultivars. The ability to discriminate olive cultivars and determine their genetic variability is pivotal for an optimal exploitation of olive genetic resources.Methods: We investigated the genetic diversity within 128 olive accessions belonging to four countries in the Mediterranean Basin (Italy, Algeria, Syria, and Malta), with the purpose of better understanding the origin and spread of the olive genotypes across Mediterranean Basin countries. Eleven highly polymorphic simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers were used and proved to be very informative, producing a total of 179 alleles.Results: Cluster analysis distinguished three main groups according to their geographical origin, with the current sample of Maltese accessions included in the Italian group. Phylogenetic analysis further differentiated Italian and Maltese olive accessions, clarifying the intermediate position of Maltese accessions along thex/y-axes of principal coordinate analysis (PCoA). Model-based and neighbor clustering, PCoA, and migration analysis suggested the existence of two different gene pools (Algerian and Syrian) and that the genetic exchange occurred between the Syrian, Italian and Maltese populations.Discussion: The close relationship between Syrian and Italian and Maltese olives was consistent with the historical domestication and migration of olive tree from the North Levant to eastern Mediterranean basin. This study lays the foundations for a better understanding of olive genetic diversity in the Mediterranean basin and represents a step toward an optimal conservation and exploitation of olive genetic resources.

Cultivar is the key factor for sustainability of the olive super high density planting system (SHD). ‘Lecciana’ is a new olive cultivar for oil production obtained in 1998 by a controlled cross between cv. Arbosana (♀) and cv. Leccino (♂) in a breeding program as part of an international research agreement between Agromillora Iberia S.L.U. and University of Bari. ‘Lecciana’ is the first olive cultivar of Italian descent suitable for SHD, featuring all the vegetative and productive traits required for efficient, sustainable olive growing intensification. Thanks to low vigor, early bearing (3rd year after planting), high yield efficiency (about 0.5 kg of fruits cm⁻² of trunk section area) and good fruit size (3.5 g), ‘Lecciana’ could be planted with tree densities over 1,200 trees per hectare for an efficient continuous mechanical harvesting. High frost resistance, very low pistil abortion (3%), high fruit set (3%), oil content (over 19% fw) and, above all, good unsaturated fatty acids profile, polyphenols content (over 450 mg kg⁻¹) and fruitiness median are the main distinctive characters of this new cultivar. The oils of ‘Lecciana’ fall into the category ‘nutraceutical EVOOs’ which can benefit from the specific functional health claim.

Oleaster (Olea europaea L. subsp. europaea var. sylvestris) is the ancestor of cultivated olive (Olea europaea L. subsp. europaea var. europaea) and it is spread through the whole Mediterranean Basin, showing an overlapping distribution with cultivated olive trees. Climate change and new emerging diseases are expected to severely affect the cultivations of olive in the future. Oleaster presents a higher genetic variability compared to the cultivated olive and some wild trees were found adapted to particularly harsh conditions; therefore, the role of oleaster in the future of olive cultivation may be crucial. Despite the great potential, only recently the need to deeply characterize and adequately preserve the wild olive resources drew the attention of researchers. In this review, we summarized the most important morphological and genetic studies performed on oleaster trees collected in different countries of the Mediterranean Basin. Moreover, we reviewed the strategies introduced so far to preserve and manage the oleaster germplasm collections, giving a future perspective on their role in facing the future agricultural challenges posed by climatic changes and new emerging diseases.

The aim of the research was to verify the applicability of microsatellite (SSR) markers in High Resolution Melting (HRM) analysis for the identification of the olive cultivars used in the “Terra di Bari” PDO extra virgin olive oil. A panel of nine cultivars, widespread in Apulia region, was tested with seventeen SSR primer pairs and the PCR products were at first analysed with a Genetic Analyzer automatic sequencer. An identification key was obtained for the nine cultivars, which showed an unambiguous discrimination among the varieties constituting the “Terra di Bari” PDO extra virgin olive oil: Cima di Bitonto, Coratina, and Ogliarola. Subsequently, an SSR based method was set up with the DCA18 marker, coupled with HRM analysis for the distinction of the Terra di Bari olive oil from non‐Terra di Bari olive oil using different mixtures. Thus, this analysis enabled the distinction and identification of the PDO mixtures. Hence, this assay provided a flexible, cost‐effective, and closed‐tube microsatellite genotyping method, well suited to varietal identification and authentication analysis in olive oil.