Fazenda Santa Helena Triumphant at World Competition

Fazenda Santa Helena from Brazil has won a Gold Award at the 2022 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, the world's most prestigious olive oil quality contest.

Situated in the mountains of the Serra da Mantiqueira, the company earned the award for its Monasto brand, a medium blend of Arbequina, Koroneiki and Grapolo olives.

"It's fantastic to receive this international recognition once again," owner Rosana Chiavassa said. "The NYIOOC is the most respected competition in the world and winning the Gold Award shows that we are on the right track."

"I hope to be able to come back here in the coming years with even better olive oils," she added.

In the 2021/22 crop year, the company harvested 34 tons of olives using traditional methods from its 6,000 trees.

For Chiavassa, this award was especially gratifying after her company faced a series of climatic challenges throughout the previous harvest.

"2021 was a particularly difficult year," she said. "We had a really long and cold winter, below freezing. In addition, a very rainy summer – almost two months without sun – made it very difficult for the olives to gain mass."

"Because of this, we ended up extending the harvest by almost three months and with a total harvest well below what we would like," Chiavassa added.

The NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, held each spring in New York, is the world's largest and most prestigious olive oil contest. Its annual listing of award winners is considered the authoritative guide to the year’s best extra virgin olive oils.

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