Olive oil



In agriculture, olive oil is an oil extracted from the fruit of the European olive tree (Olea europaea L.), which originated in the Mediterranean area. It is used in cooking, cosmetics, and soaps. Olive oil is regarded as a healthy dietary oil because of its high content of monounsaturated fat.

Grades and classification

The International Olive Oil Council (IOOC) sets standards of quality used by the major olive oil producing countries. It officially governs 95 percent of global production, and holds great influence over the rest. IOOC terminology is precise, but it can lead to confusion between the words that describe production and the words used on retail labels.

The market

The International Olive Oil Council is an inter-governmental organization based in Madrid, Spain that promotes olive oil around the world by tracking production, defining quality standards, and monitoring authenticity. More than 95% of the world's olives grow in nations that are members of the Council. The United States is not a member of the IOOC, and the United States Department of Agriculture does not legally recognize its classifications (such as extra-virgin olive oil). The USDA uses a different system, which it defined in 1948 before the IOOC existed. The California Olive Oil Council, a private US trade group, is petitioning the Department to adopt terminology and practices that shadow the IOOC's rules. [2] (http://www.ams.usda.gov/fv/ppbdocketlist.htm)

In the global league table of producers, more than 40% of the world's olive oil originates in Spain, followed by Italy and Greece. Much Spanish olive oil is imported into Italy, where it is both consumed and repackaged for sale abroad as Italian olive oil. Although boutique groceries sell high-quality Spanish olive oil at a premium, for lower-quality oil the Italian origin is considered a selling point.

Olive oil production

Traditionally, olive oil was produced by beating the trees with sticks to knock the olives off and crushing them in stone or wooden mortars or beam presses. Nowadays, olives are ground to tiny bits, obtaining a paste that is mixed with water and processed by a centrifuge, which extracts the oil from the paste, leaving behind pomace.

Olive oil in history

Historically, olive oil was used for medicines and as a fuel in oil lamps.

Olive oil was a central product of the Minoan civilization, where it is thought to have represented wealth. The Minoans put the pulp into settling tanks and, when the oil had risen to the top, drained the water from the bottom.