I previously wrote about fake EVOO back in 2012 and now I have updated my blog to show you what has happened since then — a lawsuit was settled, labeling has gotten a little better, and the consumer is a little wiser.
WHAT’S IN YOUR E.V.O.O. (extra virgin olive oil)?
In October 2006 Italians in Turin were enraged. There was an imposter at their kitchen table disguised as Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This had all the makings of a scandal. Don’t laugh, it could happen at your dinner table too, and the problem is more serious than you think.
According to BBC News, some olive oil manufacturers were purchasing cheap oil and colorants from the US and mixing it with olive oil, chlorophyll and beta-carotene to give it just the right shade of green. You know what they say “don’t mess with an Italian and their Food!”
This was sacrilegious! 14 people were arrested due to the complaints lodged.
According to Olive Oil Source, Americans are the world’s third-largest consumers of olive oil, and 99 percent of olive oil sold in America comes from abroad, but only 18 percent is extra virgin olive oil. As a matter of fact, a group of California chefs and restauranteurs filed a class-action lawsuit in 2010 against companies whose products were mislabeled extra virgin olive oil.
10 major producers and distributors were named in the class action suit:
1. Bertolli [update: Bertolli settled a 2018 nationawide lawsuit settlement of $7 million for deceptively labeling oil “extra virgin” and “Imported from Italy” and removed those phrases from their labels.]
2. Carapelli
3. Colavita
4. Filippo Berio
5. Mazola
6. Mezzetta
7. Pompeian
8. Rachael Ray
9. Safeway Select
10. Star
This led the USDA to revise its olive oil standards in 2010, which had not been revised since 1948.
But don’t get too distressed —there is still a trustworthy and flavorful product out there. You just have to know how to look for it.
Below are some EVOO shopping tips:
- Find a local specialty shop like Cardenas in South Philadelphia
- Taste before you purchase
- The best countries to buy EVOO from are Australia, which has the strongest regulations and Chile, which doesn’t allow companies to mix leftover oils from previous years in new batches. Spain is also the biggest producer of EVOO.
