Under the patronage of His Excellency the
Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Talal Sahili, SRI International and
INMA (The Social and Cultural Development Association) conducted
a nationwide contest to determine the best-tasting Lebanese
extra virgin olive oil 2006. Funded by a grant from USAID as
part of the Expanding Economic Opportunities Project in Lebanon,
the contest took place at HORECA from March 21-24, at BIEL in
Beirut. More than 35 entries had been submitted from producers,
distributors, and marketers of extra virgin olive oil
nationwide. The oils were tested for acidity and peroxide, and
only those oils meeting internationally recognized standards for
extra virgin olive oil were accepted to participate in the
contest. A panel of experts then judged the oils for their
organoleptic (taste, flavor, aroma, etc.) qualities and 6
finalists were selected to participate in Horeca. The awards
were attributed to the oils that gathered the most votes from
two sources: the experts and the general public visiting Horeca.
First, second, and third prizes
were awarded in two categories:
1) THE BEST TASTING LEBANESE EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
The winners of the best tasting olive oil contest were:
Mr. Gaby Beainy (First prize),
Mr. Nicolas Abou-Fayssal, (Second prize),
Mr. Joseph Khoury and Mr. Nabil Kobeiter (Third prize)
for the extra virgin olive oil samples they submitted to
SRI/INMA.
2) THE BEST PRESENTATION (BOTTLE AND LABEL).
The winners of the best bottle and label were:
Zeytouna- RMF (First prize)
Zejd (second prize)
Al Wadi Gourmet and Atayeb el Rif (Third prize).
The prizes were announced and presented to the winners
by the Minister of Agriculture and by Mr. Raouf Youssef,
director of USAID/Lebanon, Friday March 24th in a
ceremony at Le Salon Culinaire at Horeca.
