Theonios and Athens University test drones to spot olive fungal pressure early

By AI, Created 11:45 AM UTC, May 21, 2026, /AGP/ – Theonios Traditional Olive Groves and the Agricultural University of Athens have launched a field study in Western Messinia to see whether multispectral drones and environmental sensors can detect olive fungal pressure before symptoms appear. The project focuses on anthracnose and could help growers cut chemical use while protecting olive oil quality.

Why it matters: - Early detection of olive fungal pressure could let growers act before anthracnose damages yield and oil quality. - The project could reduce unnecessary spraying by tying treatments to measured risk instead of visual symptoms alone. - Better monitoring may help preserve low acidity, higher polyphenols, and flavor quality in premium extra virgin olive oil.

What happened: - Theonios Traditional Olive Groves launched a research collaboration with the Smart Farm Group of the Agricultural University of Athens. - The study will test whether multispectral drone imaging can identify fungal pressure in olive groves before visible outbreaks appear. - The research is underway in a mountain olive estate in Western Messinia, Greece. - The project centers on olive anthracnose, known in Greece as γλοιοσπόρειο, a major fungal disease in olive cultivation.

The details: - Researchers will install weather stations, environmental cameras, soil sensors, and monitoring systems across the grove. - The team will conduct repeated multispectral drone flights throughout the cultivation season. - Multispectral sensors can capture wavelengths invisible to the human eye, including near-infrared and red-edge bands linked to plant health and stress. - The research will compare environmental data with drone imagery to look for the earliest signs of fungal stress. - The team will track humidity, rainfall duration, temperature fluctuations, leaf wetness, soil moisture, and orchard ventilation. - The selected grove sits in a mountainous zone of Western Messinia with lower humidity, strong natural ventilation, cooler temperatures, and persistent northern winds. - Those conditions already support very low-acidity, high-polyphenol extra virgin olive oil and make the grove a useful real-world test site. - Olive anthracnose can spread rapidly under high humidity, rainfall, and poor orchard ventilation. - Infected olives can produce oil with higher acidity, oxidation problems, lower polyphenol concentrations, and less flavor complexity. - Theonios already uses drone-assisted spraying, soil and leaf laboratory analysis, regenerative mulching, and environmental monitoring across its estates. - The project brings university research into a functioning olive grove rather than a controlled greenhouse setting. - The founders of Theonios say their background in the luxury superyacht industry shapes the company’s preventive, monitoring-first approach to farming. - Theonios links the project to wider pressures on agriculture from climate change, erratic weather, and demand for more sustainable practices.

Between the lines: - The study is not just about disease detection; it is also a test of whether precision agriculture can move olive farming from reactive management to predictive management. - The real value would come if growers can narrow interventions to the moments when environmental and physiological signals justify action. - Olive cultivation has used drones more widely in vineyards and other high-value crops, but olive disease prediction remains relatively underdeveloped in real Mediterranean field conditions. - The project also signals a broader premium-agriculture trend: consumers and producers both want more traceability in how olive oil is monitored from tree to bottle.

What’s next: - Researchers will continue collecting seasonal field data and compare it against multispectral readings to find patterns tied to early fungal stress. - If the approach works, the project could help build earlier and more accurate fungal-risk tools for olive growers. - Theonios expects the findings to have value beyond Greece if they prove useful under real orchard conditions.

The bottom line: - The project is a live test of whether drones and sensors can spot olive disease risk early enough to protect crop quality, cut waste, and make premium olive farming more precise.**