This is a little long but if you are picky as the Crones about your cooking ingredients this is a decent article to read and think about. Namaste, The Queen Cronista…
Which are the Best Olive Oils to Buy? Real Olive Oils vs Fake Exposed
How do we get the best olive oils when there is an ‘Olive Oil Fraud’ happening? Many of us want to use an authentic ‘extra virgin olive oil’ to get all the wonderful health benefits and taste but are you using real or fake oil?
When you go to the trouble of seeking it out the authentic oil and spending the extra money, there is a high chance that it is not extra virgin at all!
It is one of the many that are part of the ‘Olive Oil Fraud’.
A high percentage of the oils are not at all what they say on the label. Just because they say it is ‘Extra Virgin Olive Oil’ (EVOO) or even ‘Certified’ does not mean that it actually is. They are not created equal.
What is Extra Virgin Olive Oil?
-
First, the oil must come from fresh olives that were milled within 24 hours of their harvest.
-
Next, it must be extracted by mechanical means, not from heat or chemicals.
-
They must not be treated chemically in any way.
-
Extra virgin oil is, in fact, fresh olive juice.
-
Being a fruit, olives contain natural antioxidants that protect the plant during its lifetime. When the olive tree is very old it contains more of these antioxidants. This is one of the reasons that olive trees are often hundreds of years old and create antioxidant-rich products.
As you read above, they are not all the same, so it is important to purchase the right type of olive oil.
Extra virgin olive oil EVOO (cold-pressed) is what we want.
6 Tips for Recognizing Real EVOO
How do we know if our olive oil is the real thing and not fraudulent?
-
Do not buy light olive oil or a blend; it isn’t virgin quality.
-
When extra virgin olive oil costs less than $10 a litre it may not be authentic oil.
-
Real oils are sold in dark bottles, as this protects the oil from oxidation. Look for that.
-
Look for a seal from the International Olive Oil Council (IOC)
-
Look for a harvesting date on the label.
-
It can get old and rancid. A simple test for a good oil is to taste a little on a spoon. Not rancid, real olive oil will have a fruity taste in the front of your mouth and a peppery taste in the back of your mouth.
’60 Minutes’ Looks at Olive Oil Adulteration in Italy. Watch this video to learn more.
In America, more than $700 million a year is spent on olive oil, but unfortunately, it is much of it is not authentic because of fraud. Most of these oils on the market are cut with cheap vegetable oils.
The results from the Consumer Report’s found that only 9 of the 23 olive oils from Italy, Spain, and California tested, and passed as being extra virgin olive oil even though all of them claimed so on the label. AND: “More than half tasted fermented or stale.”
“International standards for extra virgin olive oil are mostly unenforced. Although the term ‘extra virgin’ is generally understood to denote the highest quality of olive oil, industry representatives report that the current standards are easily met by producers and allow olive oil marketed as ‘extra virgin’ to represent a wide range of qualities. This lack of enforcement has resulted in a long history of fraudulent practices (adulteration and mislabelling) in the olive oil sector.”– United States International Trade Commission
A study at the UC Davis Olive Center found that 69% of the imported EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) sold in California supermarkets did not qualify as extra virgin. Tests indicate that imported EVOO often fails international and USDA standards.
A bottle labeled EVOO may not be real and instead be a seed oil that is made to smell and look the same by adding a few drops of chlorophyll and beta-carotene making it part of the fraud.
Oils that failed to meet EVOO standards:
-
Carapelli
-
Colavita
-
Star
-
Filippo Berio
-
Mazzola
-
Mezzetta
-
Newman’s Own
-
Safeway
-
Whole Foods