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The evidence is overwhelming – Real extra virgin olive oil not only enhances the taste of food but is good for you, consider the following headlines:

Olive oil ‘acts like painkiller’ – BBC

Mediterranean Diet Adds Years to Your Life (high intake of … olive oil) – MedicalNewsToday.com

Oleic Acid Key to Olive Oil’s Anti-Cancer Effect – Reuters.com

However, there is a dark side – fraud in the olive oil marketplace:

Olive oil’s slippery supply line – denverpost.com

Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Are You Getting What You Pay For? – ABC News 7Online

“A clear case of fraud ….. almost all of the virgin and extra virgin olive oil produced by large commercial Italian olive oil plants” Italianfood.about.com

“of 73 olive oils … in the U.S. Only 4 per cent were pure olive oil. The rest were adulterated” – New York Times

The health benefits of extra virgin olive oil only apply to real extra virgin olive oil and not to fraudulently mislabeled products.

As most olive oil consumers know, the price of real extra virgin olive oil has risen dramatically. At the same time the quality of the products being offered has deteriorated dramatically. Logic would dictate that a significant percentage of olive oil consumers would prefer real extra virgin olive oil instead of the over-priced, mislabeled and adulterated products that have flooded the market.

However the olive oil consumer’s freedom to choose their product is limited to what is actually offered.

Food importers, distributors. brokers and retailers essentially decide between two types of products when it comes to the distribution of olive oil: A) A cheap mixed product or B) Real extra virgin olive oil:

A) Mixed products have no guarantee of quality, the paperwork may say ‘extra virgin olive oil’ but what is in the bottle is pomace, canola or some other cheap refined oil. Mixed products have no quality stated or implied, they are entirely price sensitive. So the distributor, broker, importer or retailer needs to constantly offer either the cheapest product or be very close to it for fear that at some point their supply will disappear and they will be undersold due to the market realities of working with this type of product.

This is where the consumer gets cheated – the labeling does not accurately reflect what is in the bottle. Take for example ‘light olive oil’ – what is ‘light’ olive oil? Olive oil made from ‘light’ olives? Light olive oil is 95% pomace, canola or some other cheap oil mixed in with 5% virgin olive oil. It stretches the imagination to think that olive oil consumers demand this type of product.

B) Real extra virgin olive oil obviously costs more to produce than the cheap, mixed products. But olive oil consumers benefit because they get what they pay for – the product. Real extra virgin olive oil is always that – real extra virgin olive oil – the product, the quality does not vary. Olive oil consumers always get what they want and what they pay for – the flavor enhancing attributes and all of the health benefits of real extra virgin olive oil.

It should be noted that due to current market factors, the price difference between real extra virgin olive oil and the cheap mixes has pretty much closed and in some cases is now inverted. Real extra virgin olive oil being less expensive than the cheap mixes.

So, who gets to decide what olive oil consumers consume?

We believe that this decision belongs to the consumer. Olive oil consumers should demand real extra virgin olive oil.

Questions:
1. ‘Olive oil is good for you’ (True/False)

‘Light’ olive oils are more palatable than ‘extra virgin’ olive oil. Extra virgin olive oil has a strong smell and taste’ (True/False)

‘Real extra virgin olive oil should have sediment at the bottom of the bottle.’ (True/False)

‘Italy is the world’s largest producer of olive oil’ (True/False)

‘The best olive oil comes from Italy’ (True/False)

‘Large brands sell olive oil for less because they buy in large bulk quantities’ (True/False)

‘If is says ‘extra virgin olive oil’ on the label – it must be true’ (True/False)

‘Pure’ olive oil is good quality’ (True/False)

‘Olive oil’ after a time needs to be refrigerated’ (True/False)

‘Olive oil good for frying’ (True/False)

Answers:
1. True. Studies have revealed that real extra virgin olive oil has the following health benefits: anti-inflammatory, protect against bowel, breast and colon cancer, fight heart disease, prevent wrinkles, reduce blood pressure.

False. By definition the taste and aroma of real ‘extra’ virgin olive oil is ‘irreproachable’. Any olive oil product with a overpowering smell or taste is not ‘extra’. ‘Light’ olive oils are refined oils with a very small amount of virgin olive oil mixed in. The smaller the amount of virgin olive oil mixed in the ‘lighter’ the oil.

True (sometimes). Extra virgin olive oil is a natural product, the amount of sediment will depend on many different factors. Extra virgin olive oil can be passed through a clay-cellulose filter which will remove most of the sediment. Remaining sediment may be absorbed by the olive oil or collect at the bottom of the bottle.

False. Spain is by far the largest producer of olive oil.

False. Olive oil is classified by quality not geography. ‘Extra virgin’ is the highest quality of olive oil regardless of origin. Italy produces more than it consumes, most of what is sold as ‘Italian’ olive oil is imported and packed in Italy, then resold as Italian.

False. Olive oil pricing is commodity based. Bulk quantities are already factored in to the commodity pricing. The only way to reduce the price is to mix the oil with cheaper oils.

False. In the olive oil business the ‘F’ stands for ‘Fraud’. Fraud is a major problem. Any olive oil you purchase should look, smell and taste like olive oil. The price should be commensurate with commodity pricing. If it is too cheap – it’s not olive oil.

False. As far as olive oil is concerned ‘Pure’ is a misnomer that actually means ‘impure’. Olive oil sold as ‘pure’ is refined by a heat and chemical process. It is not natural and should not be confused with ‘virgin’.

False. Olive oil should not be refrigerated. Cold temperatures will cause the oil to go cloudy. Olive oil should be stored out of direct sunlight. Real extra virgin olive oil will maintain it’s properties for many months.

True. Olive oil is the most stable of oils, it resists temperatures of 320º – 392º (Fahrenheit) and is the slowest oil to decompose. Another advantage – olive oil impregnates fried foods less than other oils so it the calorie content is actually lower.

Score:
8 -10 = Excellent
5 – 7 = Good
3 – 5 = Needs Improvement
1 – 2 = Needs a lot of Improvement

www.pensato.com The recognition of the Fernando Pensato products had an impact in the gastronomic world. The Peranzana olive trees, a unique species that originated in the South of France, can only be found today in the Apulia region of Italy. These very rare olives are treated with the greatest care and Cold Pressed in the legendary pink granite mills to create an outstanding Extra Virgin Olive Oil. These remarkable products distinguish themselves by their quality, but also through their unique design and packaging.

More Olive Oil Articles

In case you get olive oil, you will see a bunch of varied grades, among them extra-virgin, fine virgin, refined not to mention pure.

Ideal storage tricks for olive oil, othersie known as aceite de oliva in Spanish, are important, not just to safeguard the hypersensitive flavor of the oil, but probably make sure that it doesn’t spoil, that is certain to have a undesirable result on its nutritional importance.

Scientific studies made in Spain has realized that quantities of chlorophyll, carotenoids and additionally anti-oxidant phenols decreased noticeably after virgin olive oil ended up in storage for a entire year even with the preferred controlled conditions.

Chlorophyll ingredients lowered by up to a whopping 30%; beta-carotene on 40%, together with vitamin E near 100%.

Phenols, which you’ll find not necessarily just the biggest antioxidants inside of virgin olive oil, however they are on top of that given the task of its original rich flavour, also gone down subsequently after one year storage.

Studies issued in New Scientist magazine has revealed that light ruins a number of the anti-oxidants inside of olive oil. Professionals in the University of Bari, investigated fats kept in the light or perhaps in the dark for 52 weeks. Oils residing in clear bottles down below superstore lights lost at a minimum 30% of their vitamin E.

Subsequent to merely one or two months contact with light, free radical volumes have grown so much that the olive oil could not end up being considered as extra virgin.

Hued bottle packing containers filter out plenty of light, yet somehow non-reactive dark colored plastic-type material or simply metal storage containers are the most effective alternate for saving olive oil’s important natural ingredients.

Once choosing oil in colored storage units, consider those behind the grocery store shelf out of direct light. Except if you are absolutely certain turn over is super fast at your shops, make sure you ask your grocer the amount of time the olive oil has been on the display. Choose your olive oil in less massive storage containers and save it in the dark. Placing a container of olive oil directly on your kitchen area counter-top or simply dining room table could cut down its health related traits.

Find More Grades Of Olive Oil Articles