The second edition of PistaDica, Spain’s National Forum on Pistachio Innovation, was held on June 4 at the Eurostars Palacio Buenavista Hotel in Toledo. The event brought together over 450 professionals —including growers, technicians, cooperatives, industry representatives, and institutional stakeholders— for a full day dedicated to consolidating pistachio cultivation as a driver of regional and national development. Promoted by Solagro Advanced Food Engineering and sponsored at the Platinum level by Repsol, the forum has established itself as a strategic platform for addressing the sector’s key challenges and shaping a shared vision for the future.
Organized with the support of the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development of Castilla–La Mancha, the event emphasized the need to concentrate supply, build a strong interprofessional association, and promote coordinated investment to stabilize the domestic pistachio market. According to official figures, Spain now cultivates over 70,000 hectares —representing 80% of national production— and is projected to reach 10,000 tonnes by 2026, more than 20,000 tonnes by 2028, and up to 70,000 tonnes by 2035. During his speech, Regional Minister Julián Martínez Lizán announced plans to create a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or Geographical Indication (GI) for pistachios from Castilla–La Mancha, a key step toward strengthening the sector’s identity and territorial linkage.
More than 25 speakers from Spain and abroad participated in the event, including representatives from Jupiter Pistachios GmbH, Calconut, Importaco Nuts, as well as leading national players like Grupo Elaia, Treemond, Borges, and cooperatives such as Pistamancha, Domo Pistachio, and Natural Tropic. Best practice case studies were also presented, including the Pistamancha processing plant in Membrilla (Ciudad Real), developed by Solagro, which can handle 1.2 million kilos per year and features technologies such as hot water drying, weight-based sorting, and pre-drying to improve energy efficiency.
The forum also highlighted competitive advantages in the sector, such as genetic and agronomic differentiation, environmental sustainability, water efficiency, automation, and the introduction of artificial intelligence throughout the value chain.
In this setting, Elaia’s CEO Ramón Rivera Olalquiaga participated in the roundtable “Strategies and Production Models to Maximize the Value of Castilla–La Mancha Pistachios,” alongside representatives from the industrial and cooperative sectors. He shared Elaia’s experience in developing integrated and sustainable pistachio production projects. The company, which manages thousands of hectares and contributes to genetic and technological innovation programs, reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening the sector and building synergies between growers, industry, researchers, and public institutions.
PistaDica 2025 concluded as the year’s flagship event for the Spanish pistachio industry, promoting public–private collaboration, innovation, interprofessional governance, and strategic investment as the cornerstones of a sustainable and competitive value chain across Europe.
