Santa Tecla Gratified with Debut World Competition Win

Santa Tecla from Italy has won a Silver Award at the 2024 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, the world's largest olive oil quality contest.

Winning this award is a great gratification for all of us... The award motivates us to do better and better. There is always room for improvement.

Rita Licastro, owner

Situated in Calabria, Italy's second-largest producing region, the producer earned its debut NYIOOC accolade for a delicate blend.

"Winning this award is a great gratification for all of us," Licastro said. "We have always worked with great enthusiasm and determination and overcome many difficult times just to produce high quality. The award motivates us to do better and better. There is always room for improvement."

In the 2023/24 crop year, Santa Tecla produced 10,000 liters of extra virgin olive oil using traditional methods.

"Every year, the campaign presents many difficulties, but this year, it was particularly challenging," Licastro said. "It was difficult to find skilled labor, and we worked understaffed with only five units."

"Production costs have increased significantly," she added. "Finally, the month of October was particularly hot and forced us to work during the cooler hours of the day."

The NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition is the world's preeminent olive oil quality contest. Its annual list of award winners is the authoritative guide to the world's best olive oils and the dedicated producers who craft them.

The complete list of winners can be viewed in the Official Guide to the World's Best Olive Oils.