Extra virgin olive oil (or EVO oil) is the most natural product that can be obtained, a real squeeze of olives
An oil is defined as extra virgin when:
- it is obtained directly from olives and solely through mechanical processes - its chemical and physical analyses satisfy a long series of parameters required by community regulations, for example the acidity which must be less than 0.8%
- its organoleptic examination (carried out by a group of professional tasters gathered in a Panel Test) reveals that it has no defects and that it has the presence of fruitiness. The fruitiness of the oil is that set of olfactory and gustatory sensations that recalls the scent and taste of the olive!
- Extra virgin olive oil is often cold-extracted , that is, at a temperature below 27°. If an oil shows defects when tasted and its chemical parameters are not satisfactory, even if it is oil produced in a mill and obtained only through mechanical processes, it cannot be classified as extra virgin oil, but is classified as virgin or lampante .
VIRGIN AND EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL - DIFFERENCE
Virgin olive oil is produced like EVO oil through mechanical processes, but does not fully satisfy those analytical and organoleptic parameters that allow it to be classified as extra virgin olive oil. Virgin olive oil is defined as a product with barely perceptible defects, whose acidity expressed in oleic acid cannot exceed 2g per 100g.
LAMP OIL
Lampante oil is an oil that is classified as virgin because it is produced by mechanical extraction of olives. However, this product has high levels of acidity and can be unpleasant to taste and smell. Lampante oil is therefore not edible . It is called this because in ancient times it was used as fuel in lamps for domestic lighting.
Lampante oil can be transformed into refined oil and, with the addition of a small amount of extra virgin olive oil , it becomes olive oil .
REFINED OLIVE OIL AND OLIVE OIL
Refined or rectified olive oil is obtained from the refining of lampante oil or virgin olive oil. Refining consists in reducing the high acidity of the oil by means of soda, in decolorization by means of earths and vegetable carbons, and in the elimination of any odor. The result is an oil with a free acidity, expressed as oleic acid, not exceeding 0.30 g per 100 g .
Finally, by cutting the refined oil with a variable quantity of extra virgin olive oil, we obtain olive oil.
Olive oil, unlike extra virgin olive oil, has a lighter color and a more delicate flavor. It can be used preferably for cooking or frying.
POMACE OIL
Olive pomace is the paste that remains after the first pressing of virgin and extra virgin olive oil.
This waste material is still rich in oil that can be extracted by treatment with solvents or by physical processes. The result is crude pomace oil which must be subjected to a further refining process to become edible. The oil obtained from the refining of crude olive pomace oil has an acidity, expressed as oleic acid, of no more than 0.30 g per 100 g .
By cutting refined pomace oil with virgin or extra virgin olive oil, we obtain olive pomace oil which has an acidity, expressed as oleic acid, of no more than 1 g per 100 g .
Pomace oil can be found in the supermarket at a much lower price than virgin and extra virgin olive oil . It is an oil used mainly in the industrial and cosmetic sectors and in the production of biomass and biofuel in the energy sector.
