Real Vs. Fake Olive Oil

There are a lot of different olive oils on the market, but not all bottles are created equal. There are a lot of fakes on the market, in fact 69% of imported olive oil fail to meet international "extra virgin" standards. Now this doesn't mean that 69% of ALL EVOO is necessarily watered down, however it does indicate the industry's leniency on the matter, and there are many well documented cases of olive oil fraud. The majority of olive oils sold on supermarket shelves in the US have been cut with lower quality seed oils, blended and mixed with olive oils from many locations and varying quality standards, or straight up seed oils with "olive oil" flavoring.

What Is The Difference Between Real And Fraudulent EVOO?

Real and genuine extra virgin olive oil is extracted from only the olives themselves, preserving the flavorful and aromatic taste a pure olive oil should have, and depending on the olive oil, being naturally high in polyphenols.

Fraudulent or adulterated "olive oils" can involve mixing olive oils with lower quality olive oils, seed oils, falsely being labeled as extra virgin, or falsely being advertised as being from a certain country, yet the product itself is a blend of all types of things, yet it is exported from only one country, therefore falsely labeling itself as a product of that said country.

The Mafia's Involvement...

You read that correctly, the mafia has a deep involvement in olive oil fraud, yet many people have no idea. Organized crime groups, especially in Italy became attracted to the idea of olive oil, because there is money to be made by selling a false product as premium. By the 1960's, The US was importing large numbers of olive oil from Italy, and over time the supply chains became increasingly longer, therefore easier to infiltrate for people with not so good intentions. With the long supply chains, members of the agromafia (organized crime ecosystem in Italy that infiltrates the entire agricultural and food supply chain) slowly started mixing the real stuff with lower quality ingredients. This has been going on for decades now, but it has recently become more public. In 2019, European authorities announced the dismantling of an organized criminal network operating in Italy and Germany. They were cutting olive oil with soybean oil, chlorophyll, and beta-carotene to imitate extra virgin olive oil. There are many more cases just like this one, and it goes to show how much of the olive oil people think they're buying just might be fake!

How Can I Be Sure I'm Getting The Real Stuff?

There are a few ways to ensure the EVOO you buy is the real stuff.

1. Look For One Single SourceLook at where you buy you're olive oil from, look at the country of origin, make sure it is 100% pure EVOO, and not just regular old olive oil. Ensure you know where the oil is coming from, and better yet ensure the seller has a connection to the place of origin. Our EVOO is all from one single source in Tunisia, where our roots start, and where the laws regarding olive oil are extremely strict when it comes to mixing, and mislabeling.

       2.Taste Test

         When you taste real EVOO, it will have a fresh aromatic flavor to it, and immediately taste different compared to supermarket oils. A higher polyphenol EVOO should taste a little bitter, and have a peppery bite at the end, and a milder EVOO may taste a bit more buttery, yet retaining the same fresh grassy flavor, and having a thicker texture compared to big box olive oil.

     3. The Fridge Test

When you put real EVOO in the fridge, or in a cold environment for a prolonged period of time, it should solidify, and become solid. If you're olive oil is cut with other ingredients or oil, it won't solidify after a night in the fridge.

At Alzaytoon, we strive to provide our customers with only the best quality extra virgin olive oil that is single sourced, first cold pressed, 100% pure, and high in polyphenols. We are very proud to call our products ours and to share them with our amazing customers who over time, have come to trust us and our products, and allow us to share our amazing EVOO with their families one bottle at a time.