Natural Health Advisory

Have you ever been told that to eat healthy, you must cook with extra-virgin olive oil? Since olive oil became so popular, I began to use it for much of my cooking – and until recently I felt very good about this choice. This kind of oil has been touted as one of the healthiest oils available, with benefits ranging from preventing Alzheimer’s to lowering your risk of heart disease. Extra-virgin olive oil contains healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, and has a high polyphenol content, particularly oleocanthal . This compound is anti-inflammatory, can fight cancer, and prevent Alzheimer’s disease.

Using extra-virgin olive oil in your diet is no doubt an extremely healthy choice. And if you are already choosing extra-virgin olive oil for your home cooking, you know that it isn’t cheap. Regular olive oil, or “light” olive oil, is far less expensive, but it is also far less healthy. And in most cases, the healthier option should be worth ever penny, right? That’s what I thought, until I came across the alarming news that I might be using a fake. Unfortunately, there is a large chance that the extra-virgin olive oil you and I have in our kitchens is not actually extra-virgin, at all. In fact, research shows that fake olive oil is alarmingly common, and it is not unlikely that we have all have been cheated by this kind of olive oil scam.

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Study reveals many extra-virgin olive oils are not the real deal

Extra-virgin olive oil must meet high standards determined by the International Olive Council (IOC) to be labeled “extra-virgin.” A study from 2010 at the University of California Davis Olive Center tested various olive oil brands, all of which claimed to be producing extra-virgin olive oil. The study found that 69% of imported olive oil samples and 10% of those from California that were labeled as extra-virgin failed to meet the standards required for the label.[1] A year later, they did another study on olive oils sold on the shelf in California, and again found that many of the top-selling brands failed the tests of IOC standards. For example, out of 18 samples from the brand Pompeian, 94% failed the tests.[2]

These failed samples contained defects that indicated that the olive oil was of poor quality; had been oxidized due to light exposure, aging, or high temperatures; and/or had been watered down with cheaper kinds of oils, such as canola.[1]

Which olive oils passed the test?

Only a few brands tested in the UC Davis studies passed the test, confirming that they were, indeed, pure extra-virgin olive oil. Those that were determined to be the real deal included:

• California Olive Ranch


• Corto Olive


• McEvoy Ranch Organic


• Kirkland Organic (Costco brand)


• Lucero (Ascolano).[1]

So if you have access to these brands, they should be a good bet. But if you can’t find any of these choices, how can you avoid buying fake olive oil? Read on in part 2 of this series for tips on choosing a high-quality extra-virgin olive oil.

Share your experience

Have you ever experienced paying a high price for extra-virgin olive oil, only to find that it was poor quality? Share your thoughts on the olive oil scam in the comments section below.

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[1] UC Davis Olive Center Report. Jul 2010.

[2] UC Davis Olive Center Report. Apr 2011.

The post Beware The Olive Oil Scam: How to Make Sure You Aren’t Paying a High Price for Fake Olive Oil (Part 1) appeared first on Natural Health Advisory.

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