User Safety - safe
Held on Thursday, 15 October, at Eensgezind Function Venue in Cape Farms, the awards recognise producers across South Africa’s olive oil industry.
The top 10 were selected after the 33 gold medal-winning oils from the September SA Olive Awards underwent further assessment by an expert judging panel.
The 2026 Absa Top 10 winning oils are:
| PRODUCER | STYLE | NAME OF EVOO |
| Het Vlock Casteel | Delicate | Het Vlock Casteel Mission |
| Terre Paisible | Delicate | Terre Paisible Delicate |
| Amber Grove Olive Estate | Medium | Tero (Piqual) |
| Willow Creek Products | Medium | Estate Blend |
| Babylonstoren | Medium | Babylonstoren Coratina 2026 |
| Darling Olives | Medium | EVOO |
| Lions Creek Estate | Medium | Coratina Extra Virgin Olive Oil |
| Petra Olives | Medium | Petra Olives |
| Andante Olives Porterville | Intense | Andante Intenso |
| De Rustica Estate | Intense | De Rustica Estate Coratina |
Through its partnership with SA Olive, Absa aims to help producers build their businesses by connecting them with retailers, distributors and buyers, as well as raising the profile of South African olive oil in international markets.
Shaun Saal, senior marketing specialist at Absa, says: “The Absa Top 10 Olive Oil Awards celebrate the dedication and ambition of South African producers. Through our long-standing partnership with SA Olive, we want to help turn that recognition into lasting opportunities for their businesses.
"By connecting producers with retailers, distributors and buyers, we aim to help them reach new customers, build stronger brands and grow over the long term. We also want more international markets to discover the exceptional quality of South African Extra Virgin Olive Oils and the people behind them.”
Wendy Petersen, CEO of SA Olive, says: “Every harvest asks something different of a producer. Experience matters, but so does the willingness to observe, adapt and make careful decisions throughout the season. These winning oils reflect that balance, and the work of teams whose contribution deserves to be celebrated alongside the finished product.
"We thank Absa for helping us bring these achievements to a wider audience. Our hope is that these awards encourage more people to explore South African EVOOs, get to know the producers and make local olive oil part of their everyday lives.”
Consumers can identify this year’s top 10 oils by looking for Absa Top 10 stickers on the bottles. SA Olive award stickers identify oils that received gold, silver and bronze medals in this year’s awards.