What differentiates Extra Virgin Olive Oil from others types? (I)

There is a lot of confusion about the qualities of oils, especially it is difficult to differentiate quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil from the rest. We are going to try to shed some light to better understand the differences between the oils that we can find in any supermarket and, of course, the reason for the price differences between the oils.

Natural oil and refined oil

These are the two large groups of oils, natural olive oil, obtained only by mechanical processes, refined olive oil, on which some thermal or chemical treatment is carried out and, as a consequence, also it loses flavour and much of the antioxidants. Why?, you may be wondering... First: to lower its acidity and place it between 0.4º and 0.6º. Second: to make it cheaper (did you doubt it?). Large producers buy olive oil from many places, most of which are of low quality and have a very high acidity, above 3.3º. They buy it very cheaply, they treat it with heat and chemical products and an oil that has nothing to do with natural oil arrives in beautiful containers in supermarkets. Normally, refined olive oil comes mixed with virgin olive oil, although we will find some very cheap brands where the olive oil comes from 100% refined oils. And why do they mix it? Man, because on the label or container something like: “contains exclusively virgin olive oils and refined olive oils”. Looks like it’s good huh? I leave you an example of any supermarket:

How to know if an Olive Oil is refined?

The answer is simple, it must appear on the label, even if it is in very small letters. So if your close vision is not very good, it will be difficult for you to distinguish it, hehe. It is also “fashionable” to put “Mild flavour” or “Intense flavour” on the label. This, without a doubt, is an indication that it is a refined or mixed oil (mixture of natural and refined). Well, with this, we have learned a little more about refined olive oil versus the benefits of natural olive oil, with an infinitely higher content of natural antioxidants and much more beneficial, with a pure taste. and unmodified, and has not been chemically treated. In the next installment we will see the differences between the different types of natural oils: differentiate between extra virgin olive oil, virgin olive oil and “plain” olive oil, but the natural one, not the refined one ;) I hope you liked it and feel free to comment on your experience below. Thank you!