After an incredible olive oil tasting while visiting New York last month, and reading an eye opening book on the olive oil industry by Tom Mueller, called "Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil", I thought it would be worth looking at the product with a more critical eye.
HEALTH BENEFITS
At this stage, the health benefits of olive oil are unquestioned. This followed a landmark study in the New England Journal of Medicine, 2003, that found that a Mediterranean Diet was associated with a 25% drop in mortality, specifically in heart disease and cancer. Much of that benefit is thought to be due to the HIGH percentage of mono-unsaturated (heart healthy) fat in olive oil.
Olive oil also lowers LDL (bad cholesterol) and raises HDL (good), as well as providing anti-inflammatory properties, anti-thrombotic and anti-hypertensive properties.
The price range in our local grocery store is immense going from $6.00 (Canadian!) to upwards of $80.00 per litre! What accounts for this kind of discrepancy, and is it warranted?
First, I think some definitions are in order.
If we use the definitions of the International Olive Council (IOC), based in Spain, and which the USA is NOT (!) a member of, these are some important definitions.
Olive Oil : a Blend of Virgin and Regular Olive oil, with an acidity level of <2% acidity.
Virgin Olive Oil: Coming from ONLY Physical extraction of the olives, and NO heat or chemical extraction. It has an acidity of <1.5% and must be physcially pressed, or centrifuged ( in larger factories).
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: The Highest Grade Virgin Oil, with <0.8% acidity. No chemical or flavour defects are allowed, as determined by IOC testing. Best tasting, and ideal for dressings, or on its own.
Be aware, though, as the USA is NOT a member of the IOC, any bottle can label itself Extra Virgin, without meeting the above standards!
Finally, take note: Although many companies "sound" Italian, or even state "Product of Italy", this ONLY indicates that the production of the oil occurred in Italy, and is NOT necessarily the source of the olives.
In fact, most of the actual olives from Italy, STAY in Italy, for Italians to enjoy. The source of MOST Italian olive oil for export comes from other countries and are blended to produce their oil.
Other top producers to consider are from Spain, Greece, and Portugal. Australia, South Africa, Argentia, Chile and California are now also beginning to produce better quality oils.
So, What Should I Do?
Good Question. For cooking, I recommend definitely NOT using an Extra Virgin. The smoke point is too low for a lot of cooking (350 F), and if your heat is going to go higher than that, the oil is likely to burn and wreck things. Use something else. Even a cheap regular olive oil is a good choice, as the blend of oil has a higher smoking point.
For dressings, dipping bread etc, definitely the best quality Extra Virgin you can afford. Go to a reputable
specialty store, where they should allow you to taste what you are buying. Watch your labels, if you care about legitamacy, although it doesn't always correlate with taste! (see here: Cooks Illustrated Taste Testing)
Look for harvest dates on higher end bottles, and try to use it within the year, and store in a dark place away from direct sunlight.
Enjoy them like a fine wine, and save some for me!
Let me know what you think!! Do you care about where and how your olives come to you?
Great post Frank! I always wonder if my olive oil is adulterated,as in,not 100 % genuine extra virgin olive oil.Am I getting olive oil blended with some other kind of oil? I contacted Publix,a large grocery store,in Florida,where I live,and stated my concerns.A few weeks later,a rep from Vigo called me,and stated that they only use olive oil,nothing else.It gets shipped to the U.S. in enormous bladders,and is bottled here in the U.S. .I still wonder if it isn't adulterated before it comes to the U.S. And like you stated in your post,where are the actual olives coming from? Makes a person a little wary of paying a premium price,and not really knowing what you're getting.
ReplyDeleteYup. Until North America (Canada too!) can their act together on labelling, we can't even trust the EVOO title. As in the post, I tend to use the cheap stuff where you won't taste much difference, and save the nice stuff for those special occasions and special people! :)
DeleteHi, onepercent99! I also buy my olive oil from Publix here in Florida. I usually wait for the BoGo free deal for the big bottles of olive oil. Right now, I have a liter of Badia from Spain (I think my hubby bought that one). Although olive oil is more expensive than regular vegetable oil, I noticed that I pour A LOT LESS olive oil when frying something because of its tendency to burn faster and also because it has a much stronger taste. I've also stopped deep frying since I started using "OO". So in the end,my cooking oil expense is lower now plus there's more benefit to using "OO". I've also stopped using creamy dressings on our salads and instead just mix "OO" with a bit of fresh lime and garlic salt.
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