Heraclea Food Co Awarded for Memecik at World Competition

Heraclea Food Co from Turkey has won an award at the 2023 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, the world's largest olive oil quality contest.

This is our second year in olive oil production, and I feel particularly honored on behalf of my entire team.

Berk Bahceci, CEO

The Western Turkish producer earned a Gold Award for a medium-intensity Memecik, its first award at the World Competition.

"This is our second year in olive oil production, and I feel particularly honored on behalf of my entire team," chief executive Berk Bahceci said. "I owe this award to my amazing team, who is working tirelessly to make Heraclea an international success story."

In the 2022/23 crop year, the company produced 20 tons of extra virgin olive oil. Bahceci said following organic practices helped lower production costs and kept prices low for customers.

"With inflation in full force, we worked really hard to make sure our customers won't be affected by increasing input costs," he said. "Because we never use fertilizers or pesticides, or artificial irrigation, our yields are generally lower compared to our peers. But we managed to go through the harvest as planned, thanks to intense planning."

The NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition held each spring in New York, is the world's 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.