posted by PHILEOS EVOO on November 27, 2023
The backbone of the healthy “Mediterranean Diet,” extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is one of the world’s great foods, and one of the very few combining decadently delicious taste and flavour with well documented medical benefits. It has been proven to be heart-healthy and is very high in monosaturated fats and omega-3 and 6 fatty acids. In addition, it is high in antioxidants and many other potentially important health benefits have been tied anecdotally to EVOO, from anti-ageing to anti-carcinogenic to anti-inflammatory properties.
Earlier this year, researchers from the American Heart Association reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that people who ate more than half a tablespoon olive oil per day had lower rates of premature death from cardiovascular disease, compared to people who never or rarely consumed olive oil. Phileos of Sparta is Certified as a High Phenolic Olive Oil and we recommend 20g or two tablespoons a day to achieve the maximum benefit of our oil. You will notice on the back labels of our Phileos bottles it reads "Very rich in polyphenols - Olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress. The beneficial properties of extra virgin olive oil are ensured with the consumption of at least 20g daily." This is authorised by the EU and can only be used for olive oil which contains a minimum prescribed amount of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives (e.g. oleuropein complex and tyrosol) per the 20g of EVOO.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil is the hallmark of the Mediterranean diet, and its link to lower mortality is well established in southern European countries. But this is the first long-term study to show such a health benefit here in the U.S.,’ said Dr. Frank Hu, the study's senior author.” Similarly, a conference summary from the National Institute of Health noted that, “the use of olive oil as the nearly exclusive dietary fat is what mostly characterizes the Mediterranean area. Plenty of epidemiological studies have correlated that the consumption of olive oil was associated with better overall health.”
Not surprisingly, the highest levels of both taste and health come from the highest quality oils such as Phileos of Sparta. As I have been espousing for the longest time, not all olive oils are created equal contrary to popular belief. For decades stories of olive oil fraud and mislabeling have regularly made the news. It has been thoroughly documented that this what happens especially in times of high world wide market prices for Olive Oil. In order to avoid this buy, our authentic Phileos of Sparta. You will never question its origin, quality or source as Phileos EVOO Inc is the direct manufacturer of this well known olive oil brand. "We literally control the entire manufacturing process from branch to bottle."
The bad news is that the European olive harvest this year is one of the worst in recent memory, supplies are down, prices are way up, and anytime shortages and higher prices affect a food, fraud is almost certain to follow suit. But even without mislabeling, there is just less good olive oil to go around, and this can make finding high quality bottles difficult. Phileos will never have a problem accessing olive oil supply as we own all of our olive trees and production facilities; manufacturing more than enough olive oil annually to meet the needs of our consumers and market. This is what separates us from the pack who "claim" to be producers when they are actually re-packagers and resellers of other producers oils. Due to the decrease supply of olive oil this year, many well known brands from Italy and Spain are sourcing oil from a number of Mediterranean countries that do not adhere to the strict manufacturing standards as Phileos of Sparta. The issue here is that these same well known brands are still charging their high prices when they have sourced cheaper olive oil such as regular and not extra virgin. This is just unethical and a practice we have not undertaken nor will ever undertake.
Climate always plays a huge role in determining olive quality and quantity for the Italian harvest. However, this season set the record for challenges. The main culprit was rain, torrential Spring downpours that decimated the blossoms on trees. Few blossoms meant that many regions of the country had little to no olives. Then there was a drought starting in the summer.
We are fortunate at Phileos, because our family of artisanal farmers harvest more than enough olives to meet our brand's needs. This is not to say that climate and weather haven't had an impact for us. Quantities of olive oil are down, yet the quality and excellence of the oil we manufacture remain the same
Consumers should use a high-quality olive oil all year round such as Phileos of Sparta. It should become a mainstay for your cooking and eating lifestyle. If you also use high-quality oils and want to stay ahead of this crisis, here are some tips:
Read Labels: Producers are not required to put production dates on bottles, but better producers do such as Phileos EVOO Inc.. The “Use By” dates are unregulated and meaningless, and it is beneficial for producers to exaggerate these, so unsold stock can stay on shelves longer. This is the issue with North American Food Labelling Standards. Phileos of Sparta adheres to the highest European standards in the manufacture of olive oil. On Monday November 13, 2023 Phileos announced that our brand was selected for the EUs "Taste The Premium" program after a thorough vetting process and inspection of our facilities and olive oils. We were the only Greek label from Greece to be selected. This was in recognition that Phileos manufactures "A Premium High Quality European Agricultural Product. Therefore, why should consumers look elsewhere for a premium olive oil?
Better producers also put details of the chemical composition, such as acidity, on the label (most bottles do not have this), and while you don’t have to bother leaning to decode this, I take it as a good sign. Phileos has all of this information on our bottles and we're very proud to share it with all. I have conducted numerous studies and research in the North American market and the majority of olive oils you find on store shelves do not contain this information. It is shocking and a practice done intentionally.
Another big red flag is a label that says, “bottled in” rather than “made in” or “product of.” The former suggests the oil, often cheaper oil, was imported just to be bottled and passed off as coming from a more desirable country. Italy is infamous for this.
Do not buy anything other the Extra-Virgin Olive Oil. Other possibilities on shelves are Virgin, Pure, Light and such. Olive oil is graded both in labs and by human tasting panels, and extra-virgin is the highest grade and the one you want if you are going to cook with it or eat it.
Proper Storage: Once opened, EVOO begins to deteriorate. The enemies for EVOO are light and air. Once you open it you can’t keep the air out. For light, store it in a cupboard and never leave bottles on counters or near windows. For this reason, Phileos of Sparta bottles its olive oil in tins and dark green glass bottles which block all the light– don’t buy clear.
So the question I pose to our loyal customers and potentially new customers is why buy another Extra Virgin Olive Oil brand? Phileos of Sparta is a direct manufacturer of our Premium Olive Oil which contains low acidity, a high polyphenol count and has great taste.