The Culinary Works

I learned today that the US Dept of Agriculture has FINALLY taken action to regulate the naming and labeling of the olive oil you buy.  I think this is a positive step and I'll explain why in a minute.  First, a cheer for the USDA taking up my favorite cause, quality OLIVE OIL!!

Olive oil is a product where quality makes a huge difference in not only the flavor but the health benefits as well.  These health benefits have driven the market and when you visit the supermarket, you see the results.  There are MANY varieties to choose from.  The problem has been that the labeling standards didn't exist and you may have been purchasing a bottle of what was labeled extra virgin when in fact it was processed with chemicals or heat, leaving it with little to no flavor OR nutritional value.  That my friends is a giant rip off!!

I am hopeful that the USDA taking this step ensures that imported oils and those manufactured in the US are in fact what the label says they are and should have been all along.  I have been steering people away from buying olive oil in supermarkets and encouraging them to purchase direct from producers who participated in voluntary standards testing from the California or US Olive Oil Council.

I am not a person who believes in the government regulating things..I want the government out of my business frankly...but in this case, I feel like it 'evens' out the playing field for you, the consumer, and the producers.  As you can imagine, producing quality olive oil using all the proper methods is more expensive than using chemicals or heat...yet they can't price themselves out of the market.  The other guy in the market using cheap processing methods has previously been able to call his oil extra virgin, price it the same as the quality guy and make alot more money.  In essence, the artisan producers are making less money because they want to make a good product.  I feel like this step will ensure that you the consumer will know what you are paying for and ensure that like products compete with like products.

This is a previous article about why quality matters!




http://www.theculinaryworks.com/index.php/artisan-a-local-foods/135-local-artisan-olive-oil

Here is a well done article discussing the new regulations:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100604/ap_on_bi_ge/us_olive_oil_standards

Here is a link to the USDA where you can find a good deal more information, including specifics on the labeling standards and definitions:

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateU&navID=LatestReleases&page=Newsroom&topNav=Help&leftNav=null&rightNav1=LatestReleases&rightNav2=&resultType=Details&dDocName=STELPRDC5084079&dID=130763&wf=false&description=USDA+Revises+the+Grade+Standards+for+Olive+Oil+