Olive Oil Warning

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LaVieEnRaw
LaVieEnRaw Posts: 74
in Food and Nutrition
I was really surprised by this myself, being that I am an avid EVOO lover. But I was watching a documentary the other day, and they were talking about how many companies sell olive oil that isn't olive oil at all, in fact it's mostly canola oil. I just figured it was a crock, but when I pulled out my own bottle that I had bought at Ralphs market, the ingredients read both olive oil and canola oil, but it was being advertised as olive oil. One of the factors that really gave it away is that real olive oil is not "cold pressed" which was also on the bottle in my pantry. There's also a noticeable difference in smell, the fake stuff smells a bit corny, whereas the real stuff smells fresh and a bit fruity. Just thought I'd let everyone know!
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  • Shoechick5
    Shoechick5 Posts: 221 Member
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    Not sure where you're getting your data from but REAL olive oil is certainly cold pressed.
  • SteveO390
    SteveO390 Posts: 18 Member
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    Do you happen to have the title of the documentary?
  • LaVieEnRaw
    LaVieEnRaw Posts: 74
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    @Shoechick Yea, I just looked it up and you are right, I think I just heard the information wrong the first time around. But yea, my olive oil was definitely not olive oil, which really surprised me.

    @Steve I'm thinking it was Foodmatters, and here's the website: http://www.foodmatters.tv/
    BUT at the time I was on a mass documentary spree, and I also watched some episodes of How Stuff Works among other things. But I'm pretty confident it was in Foodmatters.
  • bert16
    bert16 Posts: 725 Member
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    My mom was just reading a book about this... who knew there was so much scandal in the world of olive oil!
  • LaVieEnRaw
    LaVieEnRaw Posts: 74
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    Yea, I think Tom Mueller wrote a book about it, maybe that was the one she read! Here's another link on fake olive oil with a quote from the book:
    http://naturalsociety.com/olive-oil-you-buy-is-often-low-quality-and-fake/
  • MaximalLife
    MaximalLife Posts: 2,447 Member
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    I was really surprised by this myself, being that I am an avid EVOO lover. But I was watching a documentary the other day, and they were talking about how many companies sell olive oil that isn't olive oil at all, in fact it's mostly canola oil. I just figured it was a crock, but when I pulled out my own bottle that I had bought at Ralphs market, the ingredients read both olive oil and canola oil, but it was being advertised as olive oil. One of the factors that really gave it away is that real olive oil is not "cold pressed" which was also on the bottle in my pantry. There's also a noticeable difference in smell, the fake stuff smells a bit corny, whereas the real stuff smells fresh and a bit fruity. Just thought I'd let everyone know!
    By 100% virgin olive oil - it's great with nothing added.

    Here is an article outlining this scam.
    http://www.peak-health-now.com/olive-oil-scams.html
  • vzucco
    vzucco Posts: 229
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    I'm going to check my pantry right this second!
  • Bentley2718
    Bentley2718 Posts: 1,690 Member
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    One of the factors that really gave it away is that real olive oil is not "cold pressed" which was also on the bottle in my pantry.

    As people have already noted, olive oil is indeed cold pressed. Not to be snarky, but wouldn't the real giveaway be the ingredients list? As a general principle/pet peeve, I'm continually amazed by the number of people who are "surprised" by things clearly printed on food labels. Think the "shock" that Vitamin Water was pretty much sugar water.
  • Elleinnz
    Elleinnz Posts: 1,661 Member
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    I actually just read this article - with actual data and examples on Charles Poliquin's site last night - lots of food for thought....

    If you google - you should find it:

    charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/786/Is_Your_Olive_Oil_Extra_Virgin
  • tamiesue2
    tamiesue2 Posts: 149 Member
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    I read ALL food labels, and unfortunately, even that isnt good enough. I just posted a comment the other day on I Cant Believe its Not Butter spray, it says its ) calories, but the whole container actually contains over 800 calories and 91 grams of fat, the food industry has its loop holes!!
  • jeshutt
    jeshutt Posts: 19 Member
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    Not sure where you're getting your data from but REAL olive oil is certainly cold pressed.

    Not any more. Most oil is extracted by centifruge. Some smaller companies still cold press, but using centrifuge doesn't affect the quality of the oil. The words you need to look for are 'Extra Virgin'.
  • icemaiden17_uk
    icemaiden17_uk Posts: 463 Member
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    Thats nothing!! Have you looked to see if vegetable oil actually contains vegetable oil recently? 95% of it is actually Rapeseed Oil wich is bad for us and the environment! I wont buy the stuff at all and since when is a sickly yellow flower a vegetable?

    Before anyone pipes up and says that Rapeseed Oil is good for you I will leave you to your oplion but hundreds of horses die each year due to breathing problems caused by Oil Seed Rape nearby and many more people develop alergies because of Oil Seed Rape. This is not a scientific fact or anything just something I know from living where I do and knowing people who own or look after horses
  • LaVieEnRaw
    LaVieEnRaw Posts: 74
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    One of the factors that really gave it away is that real olive oil is not "cold pressed" which was also on the bottle in my pantry.

    As people have already noted, olive oil is indeed cold pressed. Not to be snarky, but wouldn't the real giveaway be the ingredients list? As a general principle/pet peeve, I'm continually amazed by the number of people who are "surprised" by things clearly printed on food labels. Think the "shock" that Vitamin Water was pretty much sugar water.

    I completely agree with you. It's really a sad thing that we do not question where our food comes from, much less what it contains. We give in too much to what is being sold and accept it for what it is, then question why our bodies are so unhealthy. The minute I realized this, I began reading every food label to make sure that no chemicals go into my body.
  • LauraRose03
    LauraRose03 Posts: 140
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    I read ALL food labels, and unfortunately, even that isnt good enough. I just posted a comment the other day on I Cant Believe its Not Butter spray, it says its ) calories, but the whole container actually contains over 800 calories and 91 grams of fat, the food industry has its loop holes!!

    Omg! What?!? I love that stuff!
  • ShapeUpSidney
    ShapeUpSidney Posts: 1,092 Member
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    Not sure where you're getting your data from but REAL olive oil is certainly cold pressed.

    thank you! i was going to say the same!
  • Sharon91606
    Sharon91606 Posts: 14
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    Thanks for the post - I use EVOO alot in my cooking - good to know and will keep and eye out - getting ready to restock this weekend.
  • ambervargo
    ambervargo Posts: 67 Member
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    I would never think to look for ingredients on an olive oil bottle, I would have assumed it would just read "Ingredients: olive oil", so I will definitely be checking mine out!
  • ShapeUpSidney
    ShapeUpSidney Posts: 1,092 Member
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    I completely agree with you. It's really a sad thing that we do not question where our food comes from, much less what it contains.

    I think it's sadder that we HAVE to question our food and where it comes from. So much food prep and processing is being done in distant lands. Just buy local. For olive oil, that could be tough though.

    Also, just from a health perspective, there's nothing wrong with a canola oil blend.
  • ShapeUpSidney
    ShapeUpSidney Posts: 1,092 Member
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    I would never think to look for ingredients on an olive oil bottle, I would have assumed it would just read "Ingredients: olive oil", so I will definitely be checking mine out!

    Usually, if you're buying quality stuff, you don't even have too. It's when you get into cheap generics that you really need to check. I get Colavita, which I've found to be decent quality for daily use, without breaking the bank.
  • Grokette
    Grokette Posts: 3,330 Member
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    Thats nothing!! Have you looked to see if vegetable oil actually contains vegetable oil recently? 95% of it is actually Rapeseed Oil wich is bad for us and the environment! I wont buy the stuff at all and since when is a sickly yellow flower a vegetable?

    Before anyone pipes up and says that Rapeseed Oil is good for you I will leave you to your oplion but hundreds of horses die each year due to breathing problems caused by Oil Seed Rape nearby and many more people develop alergies because of Oil Seed Rape. This is not a scientific fact or anything just something I know from living where I do and knowing people who own or look after horses

    Rapeseed Oil is canola oil.

    I don't touch ANY vegetable oils at all due to the PUFA (Polyunsaturated fats) content . No canola, vegetables, corn oil and definitely not soy either.

    I consume some nut and seed oils, olive oil and the rest of the fats I consume are all saturated fats in the form of raw butter, coconut oil and filtered bacon drippings (only if its clear, if it turns brown it is discarded because it got to a smoking point which ruins it).

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