What is cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil?
It is defined as the first pressing of the olives at a low temperature of less than 115 F with little or no added heat to aide extraction, a process which preserves the full flavors and nutritional components of the oil. – Traditionally produced extra virgin olive oils, made only from the first pressing of the olive, have been distinguished and defined by their natural low levels of free oleic acid. To qualify as extra virgin, an olive oil must have an oleic acid count of less than 1%. • A label bearing the words ‘extra virgin’, particularly in the United States where there are no laws currently in place to protect the consumer, is only a minimal assurance that the quality of the oil will be acceptable. For this reason, in the last ten years strict criteria has been established in Europe by the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC) as to what oils can be qualified as extra virgin among the member countries. These are the same standards now adopted by the California Olive Oil Council (
