The idea for this Network (“Red” in Spanish) emerged at the National Congress of Neuroscience which took place in Malaga (Spain) in September 2005, where a symposium on the olfactory system was held: “The olfactory system: From development to Neurorepair”. At this Congress, interest in holding a specialised meeting at a national level was expressed, where Spanish groups working on the olfactory system could improve their knowledge of the studies being conducted in other centres in a favourable environment, providing opportunities for interaction and promoting scientific collaboration. This meeting was organised under the name of “I Olfactory Seminars" and it took place in Pendueles (Asturias, Spain) from the 5th to 7th of May 2006, bringing together more than 50 scientists from all over the country who presented their work. As well as being attended by the President of the Spanish Society of Neurosciences, a lecture was given by Arturo Álvarez-Buylla, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

As a result of these Seminars, the bases were established for the creation of a Spanish Olfactory Network (ROE, Red Olfativa Española) and a book entitled “La olfacción en España” (Olfaction in Spain) was published. In addition, the founding statutes of this Network were presented in accordance with the new Law on Associations, and it was inscribed in the Ministry of the Interior’s National Registry of Associations on the 16th October, 2006.

In September 2006, the ROE was officially presented in the framework of the ECRO (European Chemoreception Organization) during its XVII Congress in Granada.