Olive oil is frequently the target of fraud and other illicit practices in the European Union. Photo / Getty Images
Is it worth spending $20 on olive oil from Italy, Spain or Greece when it may have spent months crossing oceans and sitting on docks, slowly losing its goodness?
Answer:
Olive oil sits at the heart of the Mediterranean diet – a pattern of eating associated
with better heart health and lower rates of chronic disease. But for Kiwi shoppers, apart from the cost compared to alternatives such as canola or rice bran oil, the appeal of Mediterranean food quickly gives way to concern over whether imported olive oil will deliver the nutritional benefits it’s famous for, or whether time and travel have eroded the goodness.
Olive oil is a source of heart-healthy fats and nutrients in the form of antioxidants such as polyphenols and carotenoids. Both the distinctive fatty-acid composition of olive oil and its so-called “minor components”, including antioxidants, contribute to its beneficial health effects. It is rich in oleic acid, which lowers bad cholesterol and reduces inflammation. It contains vitamin E, a protective antioxidant, and vitamin K, which is helpful for bone health.
Extra virgin olive oil, made by mechanically pressing olives without refining, contains the highest levels of these compounds. However, olive oil is a relatively fragile food, so exposure to time, heat and light slowly degrades flavour and reduces levels of its valuable bioactive compounds.
This means freshness, storage and packaging play a critical role in quality. Sadly, because olive oil is so valuable, it is frequently the target of fraud and other illicit practices in the European Union. This usually involves diluting it with cheaper oils such as soybean oil or lower quality olive oils. For example, in Spain in 2018, the world’s largest olive oil cooperative was fined for failing to pay tariffs on olive oil it had imported from Tunisia, mixed with lower quality olive oil and exported to the US as Spanish “virgin olive oil”. In Greece, a group was charged after being caught adding green dye to sunflower oil and marketing it as extra-virgin olive oil. Such cases highlight that country of origin labelling alone is not a reliable guarantee of quality.
In the past decade, interest in olive oil quality and authenticity control has grown considerably. Various laws and regulations globally cover standards for olive oil products. However, there is no mandatory standard for olive oil sold in New Zealand. Many local growers and producers instead voluntarily adhere to Olives New Zealand’s OliveMark standard, which provides independent verification that an oil is genuinely extra virgin and meets quality benchmarks. For consumers, this certification offers reassurance about both authenticity and freshness.
With imports from Europe, prolonged storage, warm conditions inside shipping containers and inadequate protection from light can all accelerate ageing, though the impact varies between brands. Despite this, much imported olive oil is sold in clear glass bottles, which allow light exposure on supermarket shelves and contribute to further degradation. Ideally, it should be stored in dark glass or metal containers and used within a reasonable period after harvest.
About 90% of the olive oil sold in New Zealand is imported from Spain, Greece and Italy, a 2019 article in the journal Food New Zealand said. Independent testing has raised concerns about the freshness and quality of some of these oils. In one study assessing the suitability of oils for frying, researchers compared New Zealand-grown with imported extra virgin olive oils. They found that high-quality brands meeting the Olives NZ approval standard were more stable during heating and performed better from a health perspective.
Although frying studies cannot directly replicate transport conditions, they reinforce a key principle: oils that start out fresher and richer in protective compounds tend to perform better over time.
So, is spending $18-$25 on imported olive oil worth it? Sometimes, but not automatically. A well‑stored, recently harvested, imported extra virgin olive oil can still be a good choice, particularly if it lists a harvest date, uses protective packaging and comes from a reputable producer. Without those assurances, paying more than you would for a vegetable oil does not guarantee superior nutrition or quality.
For many consumers, locally produced, certified extra virgin olive oil offers a healthier return on investment, even though locally grown varieties grown and produced at smaller scale are typically more expensive than the imports on supermarket shelves.
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