Olive oil types - what do they mean

International Olive Oil Council (IOOC)

The good thing about olive oils is that quality standards are defined and monitored by the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC), an international organisation. The bad thing is that, while the IOOC has 23 member nations who account for about 85 percent of total world olive oil production, not all countries and companies follow these standards.

One notable exception is the United States, which has its own grading system. To be fair, it is not that the US does not want to cooperate with the rest of the (olive producing) world as its standards were established by the US Department of Agriculture before the IOOC was formed.

Moreover, the California Olive Oil Council is actively campaigning to have US standards match those of the IOOC. Until that happens, there are currently different quality standards set by the US and the IOOC. And different olive oil types from the US and other countries.

We look first at the standards set by the IOOC:

• Light, in common language usage, usually refers to foods that contain fewer calories. But olive oil is olive oil and all olive oil types contain the same amount of calories. According to IOOC definitions, light olive oil is olive oil that has been refined and processed with chemicals. It is not healthy and does not have good flavour. This is not recommended.
  
  
• Pure olive oil, including 100% pure olive oil, or just olive oil, again refers to olive oils that have been refined through chemical processes. Another term, which is less commonly used these days, is refined olive oil. These are all poor quality olive oils and not recommended.
  
  In fact, about 50 percent of olive oil types produced in the Mediterranean countries are said to be of such poor quality - because of high acidity levels - that they cannot be consumed without refining to adjust the acidity levels. They may claim - truthfully - that no chemicals were used in the extraction process. But then, chemicals were used during refining. So the wordings and claims can be very misleading.
  
  
• Virgin olive oils are one step closer to being the best olive oils. They refer to oilve oil types that have been naturally extracted by purely mechanical means - by pressing or centrifugation. No chemicals are used in the extraction process and the oils are also not refined nor processed with heat / chemicals in other ways. In addition, the IOOC requires that virgin olive oils should not exceed 2 percent acidity and the quality is considered acceptable.
  
  
• Extra virgin olive oils meet the highest standards of the IOOC. Apart from being naturally extracted and unprocessed / unrefined, extra virgin olive oils must not exceed 0.8 percent acidity. It is worth noting, however, that some of the truly best olive oils have even lower acidity levels, at 0.2 percent or even close to 0.0 percent.
  
  Apart from chemical specifications, extra virgin oilve oils also need to pass taste tests, in which panels of experts judge the oils by their taste. This is because adulteration of the best olive oils cannot always be detected by chemical analysis, but the tastebuds of experts have proven to be highly accurate and consistent. The IOOC sets a total of 16 "taste flaws" and if an olive oil has just one of these flaws, it cannot be labeled "extra virgin".
  
  
• Extra extra virgin olive oil? Sorry, there is no such classification in the IOOC system. This is a marketing term that does not mean anything. I would stay clear of olive oil types that resort to such cheap marketing tactics. They may not be as good as regular extra virgin olive oil.
  
  
• Olive pomace oil and Lampaste oil are two other olive oil types to be aware of. Pomace is the leftover pulp after the oil has been extracted by pressing or centrifuge. This still contains a very small amount of oil and it is extracted by high heat and chemical solvents. This is really low quality olive oil and should be avoided. However, it is used in some comemrcial kitchens as well as sold in retail packaging to consumers - even in health stores. So be on the lookout.
  
  Lampaste oil is intended for oil lamps and other commercial applications. It is not fit for human consumption.