Erasmus+ KA1 Courses

Medical and Aromatic Herbs

Studies on traditional Greek plants cultivation and standardization.

DescriptionApproachLearning OutcomesAudienceREGISTER NOW !

“Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food” Hippocrates

Description

The course focuses on medical and aromatic herbs cultivation and side products development techniques based on traditional Greek practices. Participants will gain knowledge and practical experience on conventional as well as organic cultivation techniques of medical and aromatic herbs, pruning systems, and phytosanitary methods. Furthermore, they will study medical and aromatic herbs production based on traditional Greek techniques and cultivation conditions; such as, estimation of optimum time for harvest, production and bottling of aromatic oil; and production of side products, such as cosmetics and soap. Our experts give detailed practical information on aspects of quality control and quality assurance systems in aromatic oil good manufacturing practices (ISO 22716); product placement with emphasis on branding, marketing and exports planning; as well as communication and commercial negotiation techniques in line with the European Scientific Cooperative on Phythotherapy (ESCOP) standards. At the end of the course, participants receive an “INNOTOMIA Education Aromatic Herbs Training Certificate” which certifies acquired knowledge of new techniques and methods. Professionals in the field will find this a valuable asset for the business market, whereas trainee-educators will be able to build an up-to-date professional identity and subsequently teach their students through novel collaborative and creative practices.

Approach

Modern approaches are employed for the study of traditional medical and aromatic herbs cultivation techniques, where trainee-educators will be introduced to ways of attracting their students’ interest and maximize learning outcomes. Our methodology is characterised by focused goals, challenging tasks and clear standards of achievement. Our expert trainers aim at enhancing participants’ active engagement in this hands-on training course, which also includes methodologies for preparing effective teaching materials to be used in class. Our main target, however, is for our trainees to develop a deep understanding of traditional Greek medical and aromatic herbs cultivation. Study visits of herbs cultivation sites aim at giving participants insights in cultivation techniques and systems, how to detect different varieties of medical and aromatic herbs, etc. The visits take place at local distinguished medical and aromatic herbs producers and give participants the opportunity to inspect production processes and exchange views and experiences, as well as learn about marketing development, commercialization abroad and successful exports plans. In their free time course participants will have the chance to visit some fabulous sites in Achaia and relish Greek cuisine in local restaurants, where they can taste dishes cooked with local herbs.

Learning Outcomes

Gain expertise on training techniques of traditional medical and aromatic herbs cultivation, which trainee-educators can subsequently use to motivate their students. The educational material presents successful traditional as well as contemporary herbs development techniques of several Greek varieties, and is provided free of charge to all trainees in the form of a practical implementation textbook-manual. Our aim is to equip learners with practical tools and expand their knowledge on medical and aromatic herbs cultivation, primarily on a European level.

Programm

DAY 1

Welcome, getting to know each other, introduction to herbs cultivation concepts.

DAY 2

Basic medical and aromatic herbs cultivation principles; Groves herbs care; Simple methods for cultivation of local herbs varieties; Pruning Techniques; Fertilization of both conventional and organic herbs; Irrigation of herbs cultivations.

DAY 3

Determination of medical and aromatic herbs maturity and understanding the characteristics of different herbs side production equipment and techniques.

DAY 4

Basic medical and aromatic herbs production technology; Monitoring the herbs making process; Organoleptic evaluation; By-product standardization.

DAY 5

Medical and aromatic herbs Quality Assessment Methodologies; Application examples and practice.

Development of a Practical Training Course; Laboratory Practice; Evaluation of Week One.

DAY 6

Guided tour in Nafpaktos or Egion city, and surrounding traditional villages. 

DAY 7

Free Day (departure of participants attending the basic course). 

DAY 8

Production and quality of botanicals. Taxonomy and nomenclature; uses of MAP; species for food; physiology and phenology; Types of production. Principles and certification processes; Sustainable MAP wild harvesting; conventional, organic and biodynamic; agricultures; certification

DAY 9

Harvest and Post-harvest techniques; Useful machinery for small crops; Good agricultural collection practices for MAPs; Quality, Traceability, Environment, Health, Hygiene and Safety; Guidelines on Good Practices; Global GAP certification – Production management (planning and cost control)

DAY 10

Fresh herb processing, harvesting, treatment and packaging;  Drying objective: ratio, effect, process, facilities, size and pricing; Dry herb processing, Threshing, Cleaning-sorting, Decontamination, Grinding, Storage and packaging.

DAY 11

Extraction and concentration techniques, water and steam distillation, distillery design, extraction yields; Quality Management System, HACCP, Good Manufacturing Practices; Raw material transformation organization (planning and cost control); Methodology, Constraints, 

Innovative Products, By Products and Side Products - Marketing and Promotion Tools and Procedures. 

Evaluation and Farewell party.

DAY 12

Departure of participants.

Cultural Programm.

In the northwestern part of Peloponnese, the city of Patras is the capital of the region and an important commercial port of the country. The newArchaeological Museum of Patras, the church of Saint Andrew and the Fortress of Rio are some of the attractions visitors must see, while a strollalong the Rio-Antirio Bridge is a unique experience, along with participatingat Patras carnival cultural events. There are many points of interest in this region including the Vouraikos Canyon and the rack railway, the Monastery of Agia Lavra and the Monastery of Megalo Spileo (Big Cave), the Cave of the Lakes and the Museum of Sacrifice bythe People of Kalavryta. The main attraction in popular Kalavryta is the skiresort.

We Support You.

If you are interested in submitting any kind Erasmus+ KA1 project proposal, we support you in preparing and submitting the application to your National Agency.  We have developed a set of guidelines for the preparation of the KA1 e-form, which we provide with no additional fee.  All the activities andservices are fully covered by the grant received by Erasmus+ if the project is approved.

We are Flexible.

We act as receiving organization and accept students, teachers and staff any time of the year.  Courses are offered in corresponding target group format.  Each course is structured so that it ispossible to attend the basic level (20 hours in 6 days) or the advanced level(40 hours in 12 days).  Courses are offered starting from March to November.

We Certify our Courses.

Innotomia is an expert and skillful training organization, using educators with vast exercisein the field of initial, continuous and permanent Vocational Training.  We certify every mobility experience with the issueof Europass Mobility certification and a certificate of attendance.

COURSES

18 - 22 Nov 2024

16 - 20 Dec 2024

20 - 24 Jan 2025

10 - 14 Mar 2025

07 - 11 Apr 2025

05 - 09 Mar 2025

23 - 27 Jun 2025

COSTS

Course fee

€ 400,00/week

Accommodation

HB SR: € 85,00/day

HB DR: € 60,00/day/per

FB SR: € 95,00/day

FB DR: € 80,00/day/per

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