It's the age-old story, lying about virginity. (Olive Oil Ain't what is seems)

http://www.mentalfloss.com/archives/archive2004-03-08.htm ^

[utahguy]

It's the age-old story, lying about virginity...

Hey, get your mind out of the gutter. We’re talking about olive oil.

Olive oil is one of the few oils that can be consumed in its crude form without refining. Pure olive oil retains its natural antioxidants and essential fatty acids. The problem is, more olive oil is being consumed today than is being produced, so time-saving and cost-cutting measures are being employed.

Technically speaking, to be labeled extra-virgin, olive oil must be made from 100% olives. The olives are picked by hand and transported in well-aerated containers and then processed within 48 hours of harvesting. The leaves and twigs are separated from the fruit, and the oil is removed from the olive paste without the use of heat or hot water. The resultant oil is taken from the first pressing and contains less than 1 percent acid.

Virgin oil is produced in the same manner, but the acidity level can be as high as 1.5 percent.

So that’s the “perfect world” scenario of proper olive oil production. But here's where it gets tricky. Italy produces 400,000 tons of olive oil annually for domestic consumption, but sells around 750,000 tons. A 1996 study by the FDA determined that the "olive oil" was being fleshed out with refined nut and seed oils.

The United States is not a member of the International Olive Oil Council, so American-made olive oil does not have to comply with the international standards. Most of our domestic olive oil is supplemented with corn and sunflower oil. The main measure for virginity, however, is still the acid level, so the flavor of extra-virgin Yankee olive oil should satisfy the average palate.

[Lokibob]

[ClearCase_guy]

more olive oil is being consumed today than is being produced

Who will post the "Peak Oil" sky-is-falling article to this thread?

[utahguy]

GREAT pic! Was Olive Oyle hot, or what? :)

[Lokibob]

Looks like one of the Grantsville girls my son dated.

[Always Right]

The United States is not a member of the International Olive Oil Council, so American-made olive oil does not have to comply with the international standards. Most of our domestic olive oil is supplemented with corn and sunflower oil. The main measure for virginity, however, is still the acid level, so the flavor of extra-virgin Yankee olive oil should satisfy the average palate.

But taste is not the main reason many people use olive oil. Most want to get away from oils which have saturated fats and use olive oil because it has monounsaturated fat.

[Yo-Yo]

The United States is not a member of the International Olive Oil Council, so American-made olive oil does not have to comply with the international standards. Most of our domestic olive oil is supplemented with corn and sunflower oil. The main measure for virginity, however, is still the acid level, so the flavor of extra-virgin Yankee olive oil should satisfy the average palate.

If true, it must be so stated on the ingredients label. If the only ingredient is Olive Oil, then there are no other oils in the product.

[ShadowDancer]

But taste is not the main reason many people use olive oil.

It's the main reason I use it.

[Welsh Rabbit]

Pure olive oil retains its natural antioxidants and essential fatty acids. The problem is, more olive oil is being consumed today than is being produced, so time-saving and cost-cutting measures are being employed.

So does the olive oil that has been supplemented with other oils not have the antioxidant quality of pure olive oil?

[utahguy]

So does the olive oil that has been supplemented with other oils not have the antioxidant quality of pure olive oil?

good point. Have no idea. Just saw an interesting article and decided to post it. Mayby because I have, in the past, wondered about the vast pricing differential in olive oil.

[Welsh Rabbit]

I buy a fairly inexpensive brand of olive oil, Pompeian. I just checked the ingredients and it listed nothing but Spanish olive oil, which is good because there's no way I'm paying over ten bucks for top-shelf Italian brands.