Winners of the Mario Solinas Quality Award - Northern Hemisphere

The International Olive Council (IOC) has announced the winners of the 2025 Mario Solinas Quality Award for the Northern Hemisphere, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the competition. The award, recognized as one of the most prestigious in the olive oil sector, celebrates excellence in extra virgin olive oil production.

A total of 130 oils were submitted by individual producers, cooperatives, and packers from eleven countries, including Spain, Italy, Portugal, Tunisia, and Greece. Entries were evaluated by an international jury of expert tasters across six official categories: Intense Green Fruitiness, Medium Green Fruitiness, Mild Green Fruitiness, Ripe Fruitiness, Small Producers, and Packers.

An international jury composed of nine expert tasters evaluated the participating oils, scoring them based on olfactory, gustatory, and retronasal sensations, as well as their harmony, complexity, and persistence. Spain dominated the results, securing 25 of the 32 total awards, followed by Tunisia, Italy, Portugal, and Croatia. The winners will be honored at an official ceremony on May 22 at IOC headquarters in Madrid.

IOC Executive Director Jaime Lillo emphasized the significance of the award: “This recognition reaffirms the IOC’s commitment to excellence and highlights the passion and skill of those who transform olives into a unique, healthy, and sensory-rich product.”

Celebrating 25 Years of Excellence

Established in 1993 in honor of Italian chemist Dr. Mario Solinas, the award recognizes outstanding extra virgin olive oils and the scientific methods behind their sensory evaluation. The IOC adopted the first organoleptic assessment method in 1986, which remains the global standard today. Since the first official edition in 2000/01, the award has grown in prestige and international reach. As of 2024, it also includes a Southern Hemisphere edition to reflect the diversity of olive oil production worldwide.

First prize:

• Robust green fruitiness: Sdad Coop. Olivarera De Valdepeñas "COLIVAL" – Valdepeñas (Ciudad Real) – España
• Medium green fruitiness: S.Coop.And. Sierra de la Pandera - Los Villares (Jaén) - España
• Delicate green fruitiness: Nutrifarms II Olives, S.A. - Algés - Portugal
• Ripe fruitiness: Olea Kotti - Kroussia (Sousse) - Túnez
• Small-scale producers: La Pontezuela, S.L.U - Madrid - España, depósito urbicado en Navamorales (Toledo) - España
• Packers: Almazara de Muela S.L. - Priego de Córdoba (Córdoba) - España

Second prize

• Robust green fruitiness: O-Med / Venchipa, S.L - Ácula (Granada) - España
• Medium green fruitiness: Eredi Giuseppe Fois Soc.Agricola - Alghero (Sassari) - Italia
• Delicate green fruitiness:  Cortijo de Suerte Alta S.L - Madrid - España, depósito ubicado en Albendín – Baena (Córdoba) - España
• Ripe fruitiness: S.C.A Agropecuaria de Herrera de Oleoestepa - Herrera (Sevilla) -España
• Small-scale producers: Aceites Almagre - Almagro (Ciudad Real) - España
  
  

Third prize

• Robust green fruitiness: SCA. Olivarera la Purísima - Priego de Córdoba (Córdoba) - España
• Medium green fruitiness: Aceites Campoliva S.L. - Pegalajar (Jaén) - España
• Delicate green fruitiness: Agrícola La Maja S.L - Mendavia (Navarra) - España
• Ripe fruitiness: Hacienda Queiles, S.L. - Monteagudo (Navarra) - España

Finalists

Robust green fruitiness: 

1º Knolive Oils, S.L. - Priego de Córdoba (Córdoba) – España

2º SCA Nuestra Señora de los Remedios – Jimena (Jaén) – España

3º Marin Serrano El Lagar, S.L. – Carcabuey (Córdoba) - España

Medium green fruitiness:

1º Almazara Quaryat Dillar - Dílar (Granada) – España

2º S.C.A. Olivarera Pontanense de Oleostepa - Puente Genil (Córdoba) – España

3º Aceites Guadalquivir SCA - Villanueva de la Reina (Jaén) – España

Delicate green fruitiness:

1º Aceites Olivar del Valle S.L. - Bolaños de Calatrava (Ciudad Real) – España

2º Huilerie Biologique el Baraka - Moknine (Monastir) - Túnez

3º Pago De Peñarrubia S.L., deposito ubicado en Albacete – España

Ripe fruitiness:

1º Terra Eno Olea - Vodnjan – Croacia

2º Grupo Valdecuevas Agro, S.L.U - Valladolid – España

3º Rivière D’or - Moknine (Monastir) – Túnez

Small-scale producers:

1º SCA Oleícola Baeza - Baeza (Jaén) – España

2º Accademia Olearia SRL - Alghero (Sassari) – Italia

Packers:

1º Goya en España S.A.U - Alcalá de Guadaira (Sevilla) – España

2º SCA Almazaras de la Subbetica Carcabuey (Córdoba) – España

3º Aceites Oro Bailen Galgón 99, SLU – Villanueva de la Reina (Jaén) – España