Most supermarkets offer a variety of olive oils that seem just fine, so what’s the point in buying our organic olive oil? What most people don’t know is that the majority of olive oils on supermarket shelves are fake, deceptive or expired. Given the UK's minimal olive production, consumers often lack the knowledge to discern the quality of olive oil - a fact supermarkets exploit by selling cheap, often fraudulent olive oils. Here’s what you need to know about the oil on the shelves…

There are three key problems with the oil sold in mainstream UK shops; the first - and potentially the most dangerous - is that a lot of it is not even oil! When researching the UK olive oil industry, I was shocked to learn that as many as 70% of olive oils on the shelves are fake. At first, I couldn’t even comprehend how this is possible, surely the law protects consumers from this? What I went on to learn is that the industry is poorly regulated and the main importers, like Italy, have extremely high incidences of crime related to olive oil production.

One of the most dangerous tactics that fraudsters employ is mixing genuine olive oil with cheap vegetable and seed oils. Not only does this alter the taste of the oil, it also presents a serious health risk to those who have nut allergies. Another common practice is adding chlorophyll to adulterated oil to give it the appearance of olive oil. Some people claim to have tests to differentiate between real and fake olive oil but the reality is that counterfeiting techniques are constantly evolving and improving to make fake oil seem more similar in taste, appearance and smell making it nearly impossible to identify genuine olive oil. 

The second major issue is that the oils on the shelves are made cheaply to the detriment of their quality. For example, a common trick to reduce the cost of production is to extract oil using heat or chemicals which destroy the olives' natural nutrients (unlike the more traditional cold-pressing technique which we use). Large suppliers' primary concern is profit which is why their production processes are designed to be quicker and less expensive rather than making quality a priority. Many of the numerous health benefits of olive oil cannot be attained by consuming store-bought oil. 

Finally, supermarkets are not properly equipped to store olive oil safely. Correct storage is of utmost importance however, supermarket chains store oil in warehouses where they are exposed to air, light and heat. Sometimes, the oils are kept in these conditions for months which causes them to become rancid. This affects the taste, the polyphenol content and can cause stomach pain. 

Don't risk buying cheap olive oil from the supermarket, choose our pure, high-quality, organic olive oil.