barrels of olive

People

These are the hard-working researchers, agronomists, economists that continually keep the UC Davis Olive Center as the gold standard for olive research.

Javier Fernandez Salvador

Javier Fernandez Salvador, Ph.D.
Executive Director, UC Davis Olive Center

(530) 752-5170
jfernandezsalvador@ucdavis.edu

Dr. Javier Fernandez Salvador is the director of the UC Davis Olive Center, overseeing the production and management of the UC Davis Olive products and the Center’s research, education, and outreach strategy. He served as an Assistant Professor in the extension service of Oregon State University (OSU) where he led a multi-disciplinary team evaluating olive production in colder latitudes. He has had extensive experience in developing research strategies and educational programing with growers and processors in berry crops and tree fruit, small farms, and organic production. He has years of experience in food safety, organic, and sustainability certifications. He has a MS and PhD in horticulture from OSU and is fluent in Spanish.

Dr. Adele Amico Roxas

Dr. Adele Amico Roxas,
Associate Program Director, UC Davis Olive Center.

(530) 752-4284
adamicoroxas@ucdavis.edu

Dr. Adele Amico Roxas is the Program Assistant at UC Davis Olive Center. Adele completed her Doctorate in her home city of Palermo, Italy, where she studied the physiology of pistachio under drought stress. She also worked on olive field management and production, milling and sensory aspects of oil and table olives. Adele’s strong organization skills and attention to detail makes her a great addition to the Olive Center’s Team. She has 8+ years of Program and Lab Management Experience, including a Post Doctorate at UC Davis, a PhD from the University of Palermo and is fluent in Italia

Faculty and Research Specialists

Diseases


  • Dr. James Adaskaveg Professor, Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, UC Riverside

    Research:  Epidemiology and management of olive knot

  • Dr. Maher al Rwahnih Project Scientist, Foundation Plant Services

    Research: Olive viruses

  • Dr. Elizabeth Fichtner UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Tulare County

    Research: Epidemiology and management of olive knot, alternate-bearing cycle of olive.

  • Dr. Mohamed Nouri UC Cooperative Extension Farm Advisor, San Joaquin County

    Research: Neofabraea

  • Dr. Florent Trouillas UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Parlier

    Research: Neofabraea

Fermentation/Microbiology


  • Dr. Kyria Boundy-Mills Curator, Phaff Yeast Culture Collection

    Research: Starter cultures for fermented olives

  • Dr. Linda Harris Extension Specialist and Chair, Department of Food Science and Technology

    Research: Microbiological food safety of olive oil processing

  • Dr. Maria Marco Professor and Microbiologist, Department of Food Science and Technology

    Research: Causes and solutions for defects in Sicilian-Style olives

Pests


  • Dr. Kent Daane UCCE Extension Specialist, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, UC Berkeley

    Research: Olive fruit fly parasitoids, black scale management

  • Dr. Emily Symmes UC Cooperative Extension Statewide IPM Advisor

    Research: Olive fly management

  • Dr. Kris Tollerup UC Cooperative Extension IPM Advisor

    Research: Olive fly management

  • Dr. Houston Wilson UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Kearney Agricultural and Extension Center

    Research: Tree crops IPM

  • Dr. Frank Zalom Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Department of Entomology

    Research: Olive fruit fly management

Orchard Management


  • Dr. Khaled Bali UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Kearney Agricultural and Extension Center

    Research: Irrigation in olives

  • Dr. Patrick Brown Professor, Department of Plant Sciences

    Research: Plant nutrition

  • Dr. Louise Ferguson UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Department of Plant Sciences and Co-Chair, UC Davis Olive Center

    Research: Mechanical harvesting of table olives

  • Dr. Brad Hanson UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Department of Plant Sciences

    Research: Weed Management

  • Dr. Peter Larbi UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Department of Plant Sciences

    Research: Spray principles and techniques

  • Dr. Giulia Marino UC Cooperative Extension Specialist, Kearney Agricultural and Extension Center

    Research: Irrigation in olives

Byproducts


  • Dr. Ed DePeters Distinguished Professor, Department of Animal Science

    Research: Nutritional value of olive mill byproducts in animal feed

  • Dr. Peter Green Professional Research Engineer, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

    Research: Olive mill waste management

  • Dr. Amanda Hodson Professional Research Engineer, Assistant Researcher, Department of Entomology/Nematology

    Research: Soil nutrition of olive mill pomace

  • Dr. Annie King Professor, Department of Animal Science

    Research: Examining impacts on shelf life of processed meat through feeding olive mill byproducts to hens

  • Dr. Juliana Maria Leite Nobrega de Moura Bell Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology

    Research: Olive Pomace

  • Dr. Nitin Nitin Professor and Engineer, Department of Food Science and Technology

    Research: Olive oil byproducts and extracts

  • Dr. Zhongli Pan Adjunct Professor, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering

    Research: Infrared heating for drying olive mill byproducts

  • Dr. Christopher Simmons Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology

    Research: Treatment of olive wastewater via microbial fuel cells

Health


  • Dr. Roberta Holt Assistant Project Scientist, Department of Nutrition

    Research: Health impacts of olive oil consumption

  • Dr. Bruce German Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology and Director, Foods for Health Institute

    Research: Health impacts of olive oil in the diet

  • Dr. John Newman Research Chemist, USDA Western Human Nutrition Research Center

    Associate Adjunct Professor, UC Davis Department of Nutrition

    Research: Health impacts of olive oil consumption

  • Dr. Francene Steinberg Professor and Chair, Department of Nutrition

    Research: Health impacts of olive oil consumption

Sensory and Consumer Testing


  • Dr. Jean-Xavier Guinard Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology, Interim Director, Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science

    Research: Sensory analysis and consumer testing of table olives and olive oil

Economics


  • Dr. Travis Lybbert Professor, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics

    Research: Economic analysis of new California olive oil standards and production systems in developing nations

  • Dr. William Matthews Assistant Project Scientist, Agricultural Issues Center

    Research: Economic analysis of the olive market in the United States

  • Dr. Daniel Sumner Executive Director, Agricultural Issues Center and Professor, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics

    Research: Economic analysis of the olive market in the United States

Processing


  • Dr. William Ristenpart Associate Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering

    Research:  Electromagnetic response of oil droplets in table olive processing

  • Dr. Justin Siegel Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine

    Research: Developing novel enzymes for biosensor for olive oil rancidity and olive debittering