Uruguay will be the first country to host the Mario Solinas Quality Award in the southern hemisphere
On Wednesday 7 February, the Uruguayan Ambassador to Spain, H.E. Ms. Ana Teresa Ayala Barrios, paid a courtesy visit to the IOC’s Executive Director, Jaime Lillo, at the Organisation’s headquarters in Madrid. The Ambassador congratulated Lillo for his recent appointment and introduced him to Alison Graña, Counsellor at the Embassy and Uruguay’s new liaison focal point for the IOC. Both representatives had the opportunity to discuss about the preparatory work for the first ever Mario Solinas Quality Award edition in the southern hemisphere, which will be hosted by Uruguay later this year. The competition will reward a host of exceptional extra virgin olive oils from the southern hemisphere’s olive-growing regions, putting the hard work of the southern hemisphere’s producers, producer associations and packers at the forefront.
Santiago Mastandrea, Uruguayan Counsellor, and Andoni Olano, responsible for the IOC’s external relations, also participated in the meeting. Uruguay, who is the second southern hemisphere country to join the IOC, back in 2013, has demonstrated an ever-increasing interest in fostering its olive oil sector. In this line of thought, the IOC dedicated the 2021 number of its official journal, Olivae, to Uruguay’s olive sector. You can read “Uruguay: A roaming blue sky” through this link.