I hate being ripped off. And it isn't like olive oil is cheap, but given the choices in oils, for my own reasons I prefer olive oil to corn or canola... too bad corn or canola oil is probably what I have in my cupboard!This is the most expensive canola oil on the planet! It SAYS 100% extra virgin olive oil, and has no other ingredients listed, yet I know it is not extra virgin olive oil. How? I did the refrigerator test. Olive oil hardens, canola and corn oil do not. Apparently there is big money to be made in fake olive oil. Add a little green coloring, maybe a slight flavor, and there you have it.
Apparently, Italy was exporting more olive oil than they make. So someone figured something was up. ABC did some tests to discover the fake oil. NPR did a report. I am just flat out mad about it. Maybe I should have known. I bought mine at the Devil's own “Sam's Club”. Oops.
The NPR guy says if it’s less than 10 bucks a half litre, it’s probably fake. I hate using price for my pre-buy test, though.
Posts
Oh no! Really? I had not heard about this... putting my OO in the fridge immediately!
ReplyDeletegreat post. i had forgotten about this trick. i regularly refrigerate olive oil anyway, and i've never had a bad bottle. though it's a big concern and more people are starting to demand more information about the olive oil they buy, because of so many scandals.
ReplyDeleteyou and your readers may be interested in a network i've started to address this. check out ILoveOliveOil.ning.com. Lots of small, artisan producers in the US and abroad are joining, and consumers are interacting with these small businesses. We're lining up deals and discounts for members, too.
I tweet at @iloveoliveoil. i tweeted about your post today, btw. thanks again for sharing the knowledge!
Costas
It's crazy, this fake-o olive oil business! Mine's never gonna harden, it's been in there for days! Where are the watchdogs on this? Hope yours doesn't let you down, Aleah.
ReplyDeleteCostas, I went by your site and checked the links and there is an olive oil fancy pants store right here in my state. It's on my list. Until then, I bypassed every one at the grocery store, gonna try to find one at our local health food market.