The winners of the 1st International Soil O-Live: Soil Health & Olive Oil Quality Awards 2024, the first competition in the world to assess not only the quality of olive oils but also the health of olive grove soils, have been announced. An arbequina variety EVOO from Almazara Subbética has won first prize in the “Light Fruity” category. The jury highlighted “its light and fresh fruity nose of green olives, hints of green banana, vegetables and almonds; in the mouth, the juice is sweet and fluid with a slight bitterness and spiciness”.
The first prize in the “Medium Fruity” category went to an Iannotta olive oil of the Itrana variety. The jury emphasised that this EVOO is “a harmonious and complete oil as a whole. On the nose it is described as medium fruity of green olives, very complex in aromas with the presence of green almonds, aromatic herbs, flowers, vanilla and cinnamon; and on the palate, an aftertaste of spices, spicy and bitter, balanced and of medium intensity”.
In the “Intense Fruity” category, the winner was a hojiblanca olive oil from Finca la Torre. The description of this EVOO is as follows: “The nose surprises with an intense fruity green olive, olfactory aromas of spontaneous plant cover accompanied by tomato and green banana peel, and the palate is sweet and very fluid, with a medium spicy and bitter, brave and balanced with each other, aftertaste of olive leaf and alloza”.
The result of the competition is included in the minutes of the notary Rafael Díaz-Vieito Piélagos, who supervised the entire competition.
This competition is held within the framework of the European project of the same name, Soil O-Live, 100% financed by the European Union, coordinated by the University of Jaén (UJA) and which has aimed to raise awareness and analyse the health of soils in Mediterranean olive groves.
The competition had two distinct evaluation phases. Firstly, the Soil O-Live scientific committee analysed until mid-May the five replicate soil samples from each olive grove where the olive oil was produced. The Committee provided the results to the Competition Jury, and the orchards with the best Basal Soil Respiration qualified for the final phase of the Olive Oil Tasting. The tasting-competition was held on Wednesday 29th May at Deoleo’s facilities in Alcolea. The jury was made up of specialised and prestigious experts such as Marzia Migliorini, head of the tasting panel at Deoleo; María del Mar Dobao, quality manager at Molino del Genil; María del Carmen Serrano, director of La Oleoteca de Córdoba; and José María Penco, director of the Spanish Association of Olive Tree Municipalities (AEMO).
This first edition of the competition has been a pilot experience and has been limited to the 52 farms participating in the Soil O-Live project, with plans to open up participation in the next edition to any olive farms and commercial partners who wish to take part.
One of the evaluation criteria of the competition was soil respiration, which is precisely one of the main parameters included in the new Soil Monitoring Law that is in its last phase of approval by the European Parliament and which is a primary objective of the European Union’s Soil Mission. Thus, the Soil O-Live competition has been aligned with the EU Soil Protection Strategy, which sets out the long-term vision of achieving good soil health by 2050 and making soil protection, sustainable use and restoration the norm, proposing a combination of voluntary and legislative measures to achieve these goals.
Soil O-Live Project
Soil O-Live is a project that seeks to inform farmers about the implementation of sustainable practices and the improvement of olive grove soils. Made up of 15 academic institutions such as the University of Jaén (UJA), the CSIC and the Spanish Standardisation Agency (UNE) and two companies from the olive sector, including Deoleo, the project is part of the Soil Heath and Food Mission of the Horizon Europe R&D&I programme (the European Union’s framework programme for research and innovation for the period 2021-2027).
soilolive.eu/en
Deoleo
Deoleo is the world’s leading olive oil company, present in 43 countries on five continents. It has factories in Spain and Italy and sales offices in 12 countries. Deoleo has 27 brands in the portfolio of oil, olives, sauces and vinegars, world leading brands such as Bertolli -world leader- Carapelli and Sasso, as well as the Spanish brands Carbonell, Hojiblanca and Koipe. For more information about Deoleo and its 2030 sustainability strategy, please visit www.deoleo.com/sostenibilidad