Marqués de Valdueza Awarded at 2024 NYIOOC

Spanish producer Marqués de Valdueza has won two Gold Awards at the world's most prestigious olive oil quality contest.

We are achieving our goal of producing the best oils possible on our Perales de Valdueza Estate. The visibility these awards give us in a very difficult market is fabulous.

John Cancilla, marketing manager

Based in Extremadura, Spain's third-largest producing region, the company earned awards at the 2024 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition for its flagship medium-intensity blend and its Merula brand, another medium blend.

"Again this year, our company received Gold Awards for both of our olive oils, Marqués de Valdueza and Merula, at the NYIOOC," marketing manager John Cancilla said. Since 2018, the two brands have combined to win 14 awards at the World Competition.

"We are grateful for this because it shows that we are achieving our goal of producing the best oils possible at our Perales de Valdueza Estate," he added. "The visibility these awards give us in a very difficult market is fabulous."

Despite the overall production increase in Extremadura in the 2023/24 crop year, Cancilla said Marqués de Valdueza experienced below-average harvest. The company produces extra virgin olive oil from Arbequina, Picual, Hojiblanca and Morisca olives using traditional methods.

"The harvest was challenging for reasons that are affecting producers in many places, but careful planning and good management in the orchard and at the mill, as well as the tremendous support from our customers and commercial partners, are making a difficult harvest a successful year," Cancilla said.

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.