Thanks for the warning. Olive oil fraudsters of the globalized food industry is truly scandalous. Do you have a specific brand recommendation ?
I do not. I've noticed the best cold-pressed pure olive oils are small brands.
its rather like the honey (or wine) business (except that olive oil production in the USA is very limited) - Olives are grown on small family farms, and often processed in small plants, with varying colors and flavors. its not a business that lends itself to mass scale.
For example, you can buy honey at Walmart, but to achieve that scale, it will most definitely be a blend of product from China or other countries, blended, mixed and processed to achieve uniformity. I'm not saying it's "bad" but it's certainly not as pure as it could be. So I buy honey from a local beekeeper I know.
Same with olive oil. I personally liked this brand, because I know the owner. He's got family in Tunisia (they are French) who actually own the farms. But he's sold out at the moment. I'm sure there are other good ones out there....
https://domainedelachaal.com
For authentic Olive oils ....
Portuguese Olive Oil should have DOP (Denominousone de Oresian Prodigyda) label
Argentina: must have certification from San Juan or Mendosa
Morocco: must have AOC certification
Greece: must have PDO certification and regions CRETE or KALAMATA
Turkey: must have TSE certification and regions IDEN or CHANAKALAY
Tunisia: must have AOC certification and regions SEUSS or MONASTER
Egypt: must have COI -—— big problems w/counterfeiting !
USA: must have OOC USDA -—— big problems w/counterfeits !
Italy: should have DOP or IGP label -—— big problems w/counterfeits !
Spain: -—— huge problems w/counterfeits !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhVvkmz-oC4
Labels must have:
HARVEST Date (not just an expiration)
Origin
must be in a dark glass or a metal container (not plastic)
pressed without heating
California Ranch. Read the label. They also do blends that are less expensive. Pay up and get the good stuff.