5 traits of truly great olive oil

Olive oil has the power to heal, from boosting testosterone to fuelling beneficial bacteria in our guts. Olive oil has been used for centuries, but as with most things, the modern chase for mass production has led most olive oils to being cut with seed oils, which essentially means they've been watered down or diluted with cheaper oils.

It can be a real head-spinner trying to figure out what is good olive oil and what you should be looking for, so in this article we'll cover what makes truly good olive oil and what to look for on the label.

1. Single estate

This is a term that most don't realise applies to olive oil, but when we buy olive oil that comes from one singular estate, we ensure that those olives are traceable to the place where they grew. This reduces the chance of contamination and cutting of oils.

This key component to look for when buying doesn't just help our health, it often puts more money into the farmers' pockets and those of the small family businesses who typically own single estates. Buying single estate olive oil is also more traditional, it's the way those who had olive trees would have done it, pressing their own olives right from their own trees.

2. Extra virgin

Everyone has seen the vast array of olive oils you can buy, but what is the difference between them all? Well, if you buy just plain olive oil, then it's highly likely that's been heated and processed using chemicals. There's a good chance that this plain olive oil has also been cut with seed oils to maximise profit.

Then we have virgin, which can be a lot better but again often has a high chance of being cut with seed oils, since the standards are lower than extra virgin olive oil. The health benefits of virgin compared to extra virgin are also vastly different, with a much higher polyphenol content in extra virgin olive oil.

Of course, both are cold pressed and both should be made using mechanical means only, which is often stated on the bottle to tell you that no chemicals or heat have been used in the making of the oil.

3. Organic

As with most food that grows on trees, humans have found a way to make them toxic, and the same goes for olives. If the seed oil cutting and the use of seed oil in preserving olives wasn't bad enough, the glyphosate sprayed on olives takes the toxicity up a notch. Buying organic therefore means avoiding the artificial pesticide residues that are often left on olives.

Buying organic also improves the nutrient density of the olives, and therefore the olive oil, since the soil is looked after better in organic farming compared to conventional farming.

4. Dark glass

No olive oil should be stored in plastic bottles, the leaching of plastic into oil is well recognised, and oils that sat stored in plastic vats for months on end are going to be full of microplastics. Instead, look for dark glass bottles, which also help prevent photo-oxidation from sunlight.

Olive oil is precious, and storing it in glass helps preserve its natural benefits and avoid leaching of microplastics or other toxins from different means of storage.

5. Early harvest

Polyphenol content isn't just beneficial, it's a huge part of what makes olive oil so great. Brands will often test this amount, but how do you make the number higher? This comes down to an early harvest and pressing quickly after harvest.

Polyphenols help neutralise free radicals, reduce chronic inflammation, boost beneficial gut bacteria, and support cardiovascular health. Simply put, the higher the polyphenol content of your olive oil, the more it's helping boost your health.

Summary 

Olive oil truly is a superfood but only when it's authentic and unadulterated. Olives take time to grow, less are often produced under organic standards and cold pressing takes more time than chemical processing, all of this goes into an oil that helps boost your health, nothing beats a good olive oil drizzled over a dish.