In order to promote and enhance the high quality extra virgin olive oil sector, the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® was established in 2016, created to reward the best Extra Virgin Olive Oils and Flavoured Extra Virgin Olive Oil in the world.

The contest has two distinct sections: EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserved for Extra Virgin Olive Oils, and EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserved for Flavoured EVOO.

The international contest, which takes place in Italy, is organized by the Association EVO IOOC, on behalf of EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®.

EVO IOOC Italy is a competition organized to achieve the following objectives:

• Award the best extra virgin olive oils and the condiment (Flavoured oils) from all over the world entered in the contest.
• Promote among consumers the benefits of extra virgin olive oil in a healthy diet.
• Promote knowledge and disseminate the health, pharmacological and nutritional (nutraceutical) properties of EVOO to consumers.
• Encourage the international market towards the use of this staple food in the kitchen, given the exceptional qualities of extra virgin olive oil produced in different countries.
• Internationally promote the exceptional qualities of extra virgin olive oil produced in various countries.
• Promote and give greater visibility to the extra virgin olive oil and flavoured oil market in Italy, in the Mediterranean area as well as in the rest of the world;
• Explain the advantages of the use of extra virgin olive oil in the Mediterranean diet.
• Promote the winning producers among buyers, consumers, international markets and in the various media.
• Increase the consumption of high-quality extra virgin olive oil internationally.
• To stimulate the producers of extra virgin olive oil, through comparison and competition, to improve the overall quality of the product.
• To highlight the best producers of extra virgin olive oil and flavoured EVOO and the territory of production.

In addition, the EVO IOOC Italy:

• The products competing will be judged and rewarded by a professional world competition on extra virgin olive oil.
• All the samples will be submitted to tasting by unyielding tasters judges from all over the world, led by the international panel leader Antonio G. Lauro.
• The EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® trophies will strengthen the winning brands in international markets, bringing unique privileges, being EVO IOOC Italy International Olive Oil Contest® is the right way to present the winning products to the most important distributors and importers in the world.
• An absolute special trophy will be awarded to the winners of the categories in competition (Conventional, Organic, PDO/PGI, Monovarietale, Blend, Flavoured, Design).
• Claiming the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® will entitle you to 10 points valid for the world ranking by WREVOO (World Ranking Extra Virgin Olive Oil).
• You can surprise consumers with certificates of excellence (Best in Class; Best of Country; Special Awards; Gold and Silver Medals) issued by EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®.
• All winners will get global advertising, through our official website and the Social Media of the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) and through the newsletter of the contest,csent to thousands of consumers, olive oil enthusiasts, influencers, chefs, buyers, on-line and off-line saleschains and professionals in the food sector; furthermore, the winners will be promoted both by our Media Partners (Media coverage) and through dedicated articles on our blog.
• Promote awareness among consumers of the health, pharmacological and nutritional (nutraceutical) properties of EVOO.
• The EVOO and Flavoured EVOO of the winning companies will be presented to consumers and chefs in culinary art schools, and restaurants, both in Italy and abroad, during events related to the oleo–gastronomy.
• All winning bottles will be able to boast the quality stickers (Best in Class; Best of Country; Special Awards; Gold e Silver Medals) issued by the organization.
• Each product in competition will compete with the best EVOO and Flavoured EVOO in the world.
• All producers will have the opportunity to measure their quality standards in international comparison and the awards received will be a prestigious marketing tool for the products.

Are admitted to participate in EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® Extra Virgin Olive Oils from all over the world (Northern and Southern Hemisphere):

• A) Conventional Extra Virgin Olive Oil;
• B) Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil;
• C) PDO/PGI Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

The samples of Extra Virgin Olive Oil may also be:

• D) Single varietal Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Monovarietal extra virgin olive oil);
• E) Coupage Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Blend of two or more varieties).

The “Flavoured Extra Virgin Olive Oil”, variously flavored, are also eligible for participation in the competition:

• F) Condiments (Flavoured EVOOs).

(1)In the categories indicated, all the products over the world may compete in the categories above provided they are bottled and bear an official brand label compliant with the laws of the country of origin. Participation to the contest implies accepting the rules and regulations stated here and the decisions of the judging panel which are final.

EVOO

The extra virgin olive oil oils presented in the contest must be accompanied by:

• chemical analysis certificate issued by an accredited testing lab (ISO 17025 compliant) indicating free fatty acids, peroxides, absorption characteristics (K232nm, K270nm, and ΔK), etc.;
• panel test issued by an accredited testing lab (IOC, EU, etc,.) or self-certification of the fruity, bitter and pungent category with indication of the respective intensity (delicate, medium, robust) and absence of defects;
• only in the case of organic production and/or PDO/PGI, the certificate issued by the control body must be enclosed.

Relating to the batch of the sample entered and dated within 180 days prior to submission. Only in the case of extra virgin olive oils, to be considered as extra virgin olive oils, the samples must be with the median of the defects equal 0 (Md= 0) and the median of the fruity attribute is above 0 (Mf> 0).

All parameters must be within the limits imposed by IOC (IOC/T.20) and the Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2568/91 amended.

Flavoured EVOO

The Organic flavoured EVOO must be accompanied by appropriate certification issued by the control body.

The EVO IOOC Italy competition is open to all individual producers (olive growers), olive oil mills, producer cooperatives and cooperative associations, bottlers, export companies and any type of business enterprise that produces, bottles and trades in branded extra virgin olive oil. Proof of provenance of all the samples must be guaranteed, on request of the organizing committee, with appropriate documentation.

All submitted samples must bear an official brand label compliant with the laws of the country of origin. Moreover the samples of extra virgin olive oil presented at EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® must:

• come from a single homogeneous batch of at least 500 liters;
• be bottled in appropriate bottles/containers containing 1 liter or less;
• be accompanied by certification from an accredited laboratory (Chemical analysis and Panel test).

The Flavoured EVOO presented at EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® must:

• come from a single homogeneous batch of at least 100 liters;
• be bottled in appropriate bottles/containers containing 1 liter or less;

Any exception from the rule (only for the quantity of the homogeneous batch required), accompanied by a motivated request, may be approved by the President of the Contest.

EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® Payment methods:

• By Credit Card via PayPal
• By PayPal
• By Direct Bank Deposit addressed to
  Associazione EVO IOOC
  BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS:
  BPER Banca
  Via Roma, 44 – 89015 Palmi (RC) – Italy
  IBAN: IT02Q0538781490000043039713
  BIC SWIFT: BPMOIT22XXX

In Comments enter: number of registration available on the personal DASHBOARD (FLV EVOO CODE), name of products entered in EVO IOOC Italy. The samples not compliant with payment, or any expenses for customs clearance, will not be admitted to judgement.

The invoice (mandatory in the case of non-EU shipments) will contain product’s Name and report as object EVO IOOC Italy Contest entry.

Invoice
Associazione EVO IOOC
Via Giotto 11 – 89015 Palmi (RC) – Italy
Fiscal Code: 91032030800

After verifying all documentation pertaining to each product, the sample will be placed in its specific category. For the evaluation of the samples, an APP developed for EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® will be used during the tasting sessions, which shows the official tasting sheet and a points system between 0 and 100.

The President and a technical committee will select the jury and commission members. The number of judges tasting the samples will depend on the number of samples entered in the contest. The President (Panel Leader) and the General Manager of EVO IOOC Italy will preside the contest. The jury will be composed of personalities who enjoy a great reputation in the world of EVOO and are universally recognized as opinion leaders in their own countries. Their high knowledge of the olive oil sector and their know-how will contribute to the success of the competition, increasing its reputation all over the world. To ensure the maximum level of transparency, the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® Competition judges will not evaluate olive oils or flavoured oils from any company in which they or any of their relatives are involved, be it as producers, bottlers or distributors, etc..

To this end, all judges must sign a declaration in which s/he denies or declares involvement with companies in the oil growing, milling or bottling sectors. In the case that a judge does have connections s/he will be assigned samples where there is no conflict of interest.

All winners will be notified on the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® website (www.evoiooc.com) on the results of the contest and will receive by e-mail a notification. After the announcement of the results, those entitled will find the certificate of the prize won (Diploma) in the reserved area of the appevo-iooc.it website (MY DOCUMENTS). The publication of the results on the competition website constitutes the only official notice certifying the awarding of the prize awarded to the company, and will recognize the high quality of the product, as judged by the official panel of the EVO IOOC Italy competition. Any other form of publicity of the competition results will be considered to all intents and purposes ‘provisional’ pending the final results published, as mentioned, on the official website of the competition www.evo-iooc.com. At the written request of the companies concerned, it will be possible to provide a brief description of the extra virgin olive oil or flavoured EVO sent to the competition and information on its classification at the product prize (any score/strengths/weaknesses, etc.). Various prize categories have been established in the competition:

Extra virgin olive oil:

• Best in Class, Special Award and Best of Country(4);
• Other awards(5) (Gold Medal, Silver Medal).

Condiments (Flavoured EVOOs):

• Best in Class(4);
• Other awards(5) (Gold Medal, Silver Medal).

(4)To the winners of each single category, a trophy will be awarded to the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® and a certificate that will validate the prize won. Trophies will be presented at the awards ceremony to the official representative of the producer or his delegate. The awards may also be picked up within a few days after the ceremony, in alternative they may be shipped on written request of the producer and at his entire expense to the address provided on the entry form.

(5)All winners of other awards will receive a certificate validating the award and specifying the category of the award. This certificate (Diploma) will be downloadable from the official contest website after the end of the contest.

The competition consists of two distinct sections:

1.  EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserved for Extra Virgin Olive Oils
2. EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserved for Flavoured EVOOs and confers the following awards:

EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®

The absolute prizes of the competition consist of the Best in Class Awards awarded to the best EVOOs or Condiments (Flavoured EVOO) in the category to which they belong.

• A. EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® – Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
  Best in Class divided into extra virgin olive oils from the Northern Hemisphere or the Southern Hemisphere:
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Award – North Hemisphere: top prize to the best single varietal, coupage (blend) or organic extra virgin olive oil from the Northern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Award – South Hemisphere: top prize to the best single varietal, coupage (blend) or organic extra virgin olive oil from the Southern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Organic – North Hemisphere: top prize to the best organic extra virgin olive oil from the Northern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Organic – South Hemisphere: top prize to the best organic extra virgin olive oil from the Southern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International PDO/PGI – North Hemisphere: top prize to the best PDO/PGI extra virgin olive oil from the Northern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Monovarietal – North Hemisphere: top prize to the best single varietal extra virgin olive oil from the Northern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Monovarietal – South Hemisphere: top prize to the best single varietal extra virgin olive oil from the Southern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Coupage – North Hemisphere: top prize to the best coupage (blend) extra virgin olive oil from the Northern Hemisphere.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Coupage – South Hemisphere: top prize to the best coupage (blend) extra virgin olive oil from the Southern Hemisphere.

To the absolute prizes listed above are added Special Awards and Best of Country.

Special Awards

• • EVO IOOC Italy Best of Host Region: top prize to the best single varietal, coupage (blend) or organic extra virgin olive oil from the Italian region hosting the competition.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Ràul C. Castellani Best of South America dedicated to who has been the Technical Director and co-founder of the Contest, for the best extra virgin olive oil monovarietal, coupage (blend) or organic from

South America.

• • EVO IOOC Italy Best Of Area, special award to the best extra virgin olive oil of a single region or area.

Best Of Country

• • EVO IOOC Italy Best Of Country, special award to the best extra virgin olive oil of a single country.
• B. EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserved for Flavoured EVOOs

Best in Class

• • EVO IOOC Italy Best International Flavoured EVOO: top prize to the best Flavoured extra virgin olive oil. Other awards (Gold and Silver Medals) for Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Flavoured EVOO.
  • EVO IOOC Italy Gold Medal (from 84 to 100 points)
  • EVO IOOC Italy Silver Medal (from 65 to <84 points)

At the same extra virgin olive oil that will get the highest score in more than one of the categories in competition, will be awarded only one prize, following this order:

• Best International;
• Best Organic;
• Best PDO/PGI;
• Best Monovarietal;
• Best Coupage;
• Best of Country;
• Special Awards.

In order to encourage the commercial activity and promotion of extra virgin olive oils and flavoured EVOOs awarded in the competition, the organization will provide, upon request of the company and for a fee, the high definition file of the sticker showing the category of prize won (Best in Class; Best of Country; Special Awards; Gold Medal; Silver Medal) to be printed and affixed on the label.

Price list of files with the sticker certifying the category of prize won:

• Only one sticker: € 150,00
• Up to 2 stickers: € 120,00 each
• More than 2 stickers: € 100,00 each

(6)Printing specifications for stickers: Print size: 30mm x 30mm – Edge requirements (standard and minimum sizes) Minimum size: 2.54mm, Maximum size: 2.54mm. We recommend indicating the cutting line with a 0.5 -1pt magenta mark.

You can request the file by accessing your private area, or by writing to the e-mail address: info@evo-iooc.com attaching the payment receipt. Winners will be permitted to affix the adhesive labels supplied by the Contest Organization ONLY to bottles containing the same oil (same harvest, olive varietals and production batch) and in the same packaging as the winning sample. Any other use of the prize sticker is not allowed.

The technical committee of the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserves the right to carry out an analytical check of the extra virgin olive oils and condiments that will win one of the competition prizes, by sending the sample to an analysis laboratory accredited for commercial compliance verification. A sample of all the winning products will be kept by the President of the competition for 30 days from the conclusion of the prize in order to possibly be subjected to analysis and checks. In addition, all stored samples can be used for promotion and dissemination of the quality of extra virgin olive oil. The individual company or natural person participating is responsible for all data reported on the registration form and the technical committee has the right to verify its authenticity. It is illegal to reproduce or falsify the name, the competition logo, the sticker and the certificate of the prizes won; the certificate of attestation of the prize awarded, the name and the logo of the competition are of free use, exclusively for the winning companies. Offenders will be prosecuted by law. In case of disputes with the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®, the parties agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Palmi (Italy) court notwithstanding the nationality of the contestants. The only official recognized languages for documents concerning the competition are Italian and English. The Organizing Committee reserves the right to change the above terms and conditions at any time in case of necessity. DISPUTES of EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®: in no case will the samples be subjected to tasting again as the deliberation of the jury of the competition is unquestionable; it is recalled that participation in the contest also implies the specific acceptance of this rule.

EVO IOOC Italy – EVO International Olive Oil Contest
Via Giotto, 11 – 89015 PALMI (RC)
Fiscal code: 91032030800 –
E-mail: info@evo-iooc.com

EVO IOOC Italy Competition
Presidency: Antonio G. Lauro
via Giotto, 11 – 89015 Palmi (RC) – e-mail: lauro@evo-iooc.com

General Direction of the EVO IOOC Italy Competition:
Stefania Reggio
Corso Europa, 16 – 20060 Pessano Con Bornago (MI) – e-mail: reggio@evo-iooc.com

Technical Direction of the EVO IOOC Italy Competition:
Leonardo Castellani
Città di Mendoza Mendoza (Argentina) – e-mail: info@evo-iooc.com

Website: www.evo-iooc.com – Official e-mail address: info@evo-iooc.com

To encourage the commercial activity and promotion of extra virgin olive oils and Flavoured EVOOs awarded in the competition, the organisation will provide, upon request and for a fee, the high definition file of the sticker showing the category of prize won (Best in Class; Best of Country; Special Awards; Gold Medal; Silver Medal) to be printed and affixed on the label.

Please find below the price list for files with the sticker certifying the category of prize won.

• Only one sticker: € 150,00
• Up to 2 stickers: € 120,00 each
• More than 2 stickers: € 100,00 each
• The cost for a single sticker is € 150.00.
• For up to two stickers, the cost is € 120.00 each.
• For more than two stickers, the cost is € 100.00 each. 

⁽⁶⁾Printing specifications for stickers: The print size is 30mm x 30mm. The edge requirements are as follows:

• Minimum size: 2.54mm
• Maximum size: 2.54mm It is recommended that the cutting line be indicated with a 0.5-1pt magenta mark.

Please access your private area or contact us at info@evo-iooc.com to request the file, attaching your payment receipt. Winners are permitted to affix the adhesive labels provided by the Contest Organisation to bottles containing the same product (same harvest, olive varietals and production batch) and in the same packaging as the winning sample.  The prize sticker may not be used for any other purpose.

The technical committee of the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest® reserves the right to carry out an analytical check of the extra virgin olive oils and condiments that will win one of the competition prizes. This will be done by sending the sample to an analysis laboratory accredited for commercial compliance verification. A sample of all winning products will be retained by the President of the competition for a period of 30 days following the conclusion of the prize in order to facilitate potential analysis and checks.

Furthermore, all stored samples can be used for the promotion and dissemination of the quality of EVOO.

It is the responsibility of the individual company or natural person participating to ensure the accuracy and authenticity of all data reported on the registration form. The technical committee reserves the right to verify this information. It is prohibited to reproduce or falsify the name, competition logo, sticker and certificate of the prizes won, as well as the certificate of attestation of the prize awarded and the competition’s name and logo. These may be used by winning companies for promotional purposes. 

Any breach of this agreement will result in legal action being taken against the offender.

In the event of a dispute with the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®, the parties agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Palmi (Italy) court, regardless of the nationality of the contestants.

Documents pertaining to the competition must be submitted in either Italian or English. The Organising Committee reserves the right to amend the above terms and conditions at any time should the need arise.

In the event of a dispute regarding the EVO IOOC Italy EVO International Olive Oil Contest®, the samples will not be subject to further tasting. The decision of the jury is final and binding. Participation in the contest implies acceptance of this rule.

• EVO IOOC Italy – EVO International Olive Oil Contest Via Giotto, 11 – 89015 PALMI (RC)

Fiscal code: 91032030800 – E-mail: info@evo-iooc.com

• EVO IOOC Italy Competition Presidency: Antonio G. Lauro via Giotto, 11 – 89015 Palmi (RC) – e-mail: lauro@evo-iooc.com
• General Direction of the EVO IOOC Italy Competition: Stefania Reggio

Corso Europa, 16 – 20060 Pessano Con Bornago (MI) – e-mail: reggio@evo-iooc.com

• Technical Direction of the EVO IOOC Italy Competition: Leonardo Castellani Città di Mendoza Mendoza (Argentina) – e-mail: info@evo-iooc.com
• Website: evo–iooc.com – Official e-mail address: info@evo-iooc.com