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Are your Olive and Avocado Oils pure?

Do you trust labels? 

It’s sad but true. Labels often hide the true ingredients. 

Real Olive Oil is green and a little bitter

Most Americans have never tasted pure Olive Oil. The sharp taste of real Olive Oil is distinctive and changes recipes.

Pour some of your oil into a white or clear bowl and check the color. Is it pale yellow or bright green?

The darker the color, and the more green, the more likely it’s straight olive oil not “cut” with canola or sunflower oil. 

Some olives are naturally milder in taste and color, or can be harvested at different times. This can make the oil milder and not as dark.

Many oil vendors “cut” their oil before bottling

Many companies add other cheaper oils to give them more volume and sales.

Why?

• Avocado and Olive fruits are expensive and fragile
• Mixing with Canola or Sunflower Oil adds volume
• Mixed oils are milder in taste, more suitable to American palates

There’s Canola Oil in my Avocado Oil?

Yep! There could be….

Genetically modified Canola is often used to dilute poorer-quality Olive and Avocado oils.

Sunflower and Safflower seed oils are used as well. 

Is Canola Oil Healthy?

All SEED oils such as corn, canola, sunflower and safflower are high in POLYunsaturated fat. 

Fruit and Nut oils such as Olive, Avocado and Macadamia are higher in MONOunsaturated fat.

Polyunsaturated fats are much more likely to clog arteries, cause fatty liver, and elevate LDL Cholesterol (the bad kind).

Unfortunately, almost all restaurant, packaged, processed and to-go food is made with polyunsaturated seed oils. 

Why?

Because it is cheap, and tasteless.

Do Labels Say What Oils are in the Bottle?

Not always, no.

Consumer watchdog and government groups have fought this issue for decades. But compliance and enforcement are minimal.

There is NO guarantee your Avocado or Olive Oil are labelled correctly.

How to Buy Pure Oil

• Look for oils grown and sold by single vendors such as estate farms
• Foreign Olive Oil is usually pure (Greek, Spanish, Italian)
• Choose dark bottles that protect oil from rancidity
• Organic, Extra Virgin, Cold Pressed oils are more likely to be pure
• Use the taste test! Olive Oil should be slightly bitter, spicy and brightly colored
• Price is not always a guarantee but cheap product is suspect
• Large national brands often test poorly
• Look at the bottled date to make sure your oil is not old

How to Care for Olive and Avocado Oils

Unrefined Avocado Oil should not advertise “high smoke point”. 300 – 400 degrees is a good low smoke point on a label.

Keep your bottles tightly closed in a dark place. 

Consider refrigerating your oils. I keep my oils refrigerated and take them out of the fridge to soften before use.

Use your oils as seasonings rather than as cooking oils. 

Alternatives to Avocado and Olive Oil

I use more saturated fats than unsaturated fats.

Why? Because humans evolved eating healthy wild animals and seafoods and their saturated fats and organs. 

Plus coconut oil – a surprisingly excellent saturated fat.

The unsaturated oil I use to replace Olive and some of my Avocado oils is Tea Seed Oil – NOT Tea Tree Oil.

Only one company is making this, which is sometimes hard to find.

This Podcast and article tell you about this oil. It even has a better nutritional profile than Olive Oil!