Spanish Producers Celebrate Award-Winning Finish After Demanding Harvest
10/05/2024 (Olive Oil Times) - Olive farmers and millers in Spain, the world’s largest olive oil-producing country, once again overcame extreme temperatures and dry weather to produce world-class extra virgin olive oil.
Eighty-two extra virgin olive oil brands from six autonomous communities earned awards at the 2024 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition.
According to the latest data, Spain produced 846,800 tons in the 2023/24 crop year, significantly below the average of the past half-decade but far higher than last year’s historically poor harvest.
Farmers and millers overcame the combination of many olive trees producing less fruit and lower oil accumulation levels due to extreme spring temperature swings and the impacts of the drought.
High temperatures in the autumn, when many producers started their early harvests, also complicated efforts to produce award-winning extra virgin olive oil.
This was especially true in Andalusia, Spain’s largest olive oil-producing region, where two-thirds of the country’s World Competition awards were won. Spain’s largest autonomous community produced 574,295 tons in the 2023/24 crop year.
“This year has been especially difficult because the high temperatures in October have made it difficult for the olive tree to synthesize the oil and for us to perform cold extraction in the mill,” said Juan Ignacio, the chief executive of La Olivilla, which earned its tenth consecutive World Competition award for Dehesa de la Sabina.
He described winning the Gold Award for the organic medium-intensity Picual as “the happiest of endings” after a “complicated harvest.”
“The award allows us to consolidate and position Dehesa de la Sabina as a reference in the international market and differentiate our oil from others,” Ignacio added.
Fellow Andalusian producer Luque Ecológico also celebrated winning a Gold Award at the 2024 NYIOOC.
Similarly, the organic farmers overcame high temperatures and drought to win a ninth straight award. Still, they admitted that the company produced about half as much olive oil as it would in an average year.
While winning awards at the competition vindicates the ability of organic and sustainable production to achieve consistently high quality, sales and quality manager Rafael Gálvez said the awards are also among the best marketing tools.
“These awards are undoubtedly marketing tools that help companies position their products as high quality and are appreciated by customers,” he said. “It helps to position the image of the company and help with sales.”
On the other side of Spain, farmers and millers in Catalonia earned the second-highest amount of NYIOOC awards with 12.
During the harvest, producers in the autonomous community, Spain’s fourth-highest producing region, also overcame severe drought, including water restrictions in Catalonia’s eastern half.
“Winning the Silver Award at NYIOOC is an honor for us,” said Alba Comadran Turu, a spokesperson at Lleida-based Guadea. “It recognizes our constant commitment to excellence and quality in every step of our production process. We are proud that our efforts are reflected in this prestigious award.”
She added, “We face various challenges in producing our high-quality extra virgin olive oil. “From varying weather conditions to the meticulous selection of olives, each stage of the process presents its own challenges.”
Gaudea specializes in producing Arbequina monovarietal extra virgin olive oil with the Les Garrigues Protected Designation of Origin certification. Comadran said winning at the NYIOOC will help raise the profile of their brand internationally.