OPG Paunovic Wins Gold Award After First Harvest

OPG Paunovic from Croatia has triumphed at the 2023 NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition, the world's largest olive oil quality contest.

We are very happy and proud. This is a big success for a young company

Mario Paunovic, owner

The Istrian producer earned a Gold Award for its Canolle brand, a medium blend of Frantoio, Leccino, Buza and Pendolino olives.

"We are very happy and proud," owner Mario Paunovic said. "This is a big success for a young company. Canolle is a new project which we started in 2022, and we are trying to make it bigger."

In the 2022/23 crop year, OPG Paunovic produced 400 liters of extra virgin olive oil using traditional methods from its 200-tree grove in Bale.

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.