L'Olio dei Papi 100% Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil cold extracted produced from the centuries-old olive groves of the ancient lands of the Popes 0,5 LT (gift box)

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While this investigation has just come to light, fraud in the Italian olive oil industry is very old indeed. Amphorae used to store olive oil in ancient Rome display several anti-fraud measures, including clear labelling and a primitive form of "traceability". In the original Godfather novel, Mario Puzo modelled Vito Corleone on a real-life olive oil mafioso named Joe Profaci. Just this month, an American writer living in Liguria named Tom Mueller published a book about fraud in the Italian olive oil industry. The text develops an interesting article on the subject he wrote for the New Yorker in 2007. As much as Solon’s law was recognition of the religious and cultural significance of the olive tree, it would have surely been aimed also at protecting the economic advantage gained from a vibrant olive oil industry. The Cretans and Phoenicians were the great oil salesmen of their day, trading throughout the Mediterranean. By the time of the Romans, olive oil production was codified and classified into 10 different grades. As ever, the slaves had the worst of it – their oil, known as “cibbarim”, was made from diseased fruit. Olive oil is a staple of the Mediterranean diet and its long list of health benefits is constantly growing. It contains Vitamin E, Vitamin K and plenty of beneficial fatty acids including Omega-6 and Omega-4. As with today, the earliest agriculturalists likely selected for the trees that bore fruit early and produced ample yields. In the New York Times bestselling Extra Virginity, Tom Mueller writes both a love letter to ages-old, family-run, small batch olive oil purveyors and a scathing survey of the widespread global oil fraud that threatens to destroy the entire industry. If you didn’t think a common kitchen ingredient could be fascinating, you would be wrong, as the book is as compelling as any crime novel—it’s also a must-read for anyone who is interested in food health.

in Nutritional Medicine. She is best known for writing over 70 top selling health and nutrition books and, in the process, being awarded multiple prizes for her contribution to cutting-edge human nutrition. Flavoured or infused olive oil can be composed of refined oils, pure extra-virgin oils or a combination of both. Aromatics such as garlic, chilli and truffle are steeped in plain oil to produce flavoured variations. Flavoured oils aren’t usually used for frying, but are ideal for finishing dishes and for mixing into things like soup and pasta sauce. Olive oil is a rich source of beneficial, monounsaturated fats which are characterised by having a single double bond. As much as 75% of the fatty acids in olive oil consist of oleic acid (sometimes referred to as an omega-9). Of the remaining fats, around 15% are saturated (containing no double bonds) and 10% are polyunsaturated (containing more than one double bond). Extra virgin olive oil One of its most famous uses in the ancient world was in sports. In Ancient Greece, it was customary for athletes to rub their muscles with olive oil before entering the gymnasium. This was intended to help prevent injuries and muscle pain during and after physical activity. Recent studies have confirmed that there's some truth in this ancient practice, and that massaging with olive oil can help ease muscle fatigue and decrease the lactic acid that can build up during a workout. Others have found evidence that olive oil may also have effects as a pain-relieving anti-inflammatory.The antioxidants in extra virgin olive oil have been shown to help fight disease, as well as act as an anti-inflammatory in the body, protecting LDL cholesterol from oxidation. In the medieval town of Pollensa there is an olive tree that seems to be clinging on to life by divine providence alone Also beware of ambiguous wording. Just because an oil says it’s a ‘product of Spain’, for example, doesn’t mean the olives were grown or harvested there. This can simply mean it’s been imported from elsewhere and bottled there.

Olives are stone fruits like cherries or plums. And much like fruit juice, extra virgin olive oil should be made from freshly squeezed olives. It’s literally fresh juice—sure, olive oil keeps better than citrus, but you don’t squeeze your oranges on July 1, and drink the juice on August 27. Olive trees are not easy to propagate by seed, as the juvenile phase is so long. It takes about 10-16 years for an olive tree to bear fruit. What’s more, the offspring also bear little resemblance to the mother tree. Soon enough, olive oil really was liquid gold, as it was once called by the famous Greek poet, Homer. As Vossen states, ancient documents found in Syria show that olive oil was five times more expensive than the price of wine. It was two and a half times more expensive than other seed oils used at the time.In fact, recent research from olive oil experts, Filippo Berio and Glasgow University has discovered that eating 20ml of raw (meaning, uncooked) olive oil each day, has significant heart health benefits. The research also shows that no other type of oil has a positive effect on heart health (sorry sunflower and rapeseed oil!).