Cold pressed olive oil

Cold pressed olive oil or Cold extraction means that the oil was not heated over a certain temperature (usually 80 °F / 27 °C) during processing, thus retaining more nutrients and undergoing less degradation. Even better and in order to ensure even better results for the extra virgin olive oil, we can take it a step (or more) further. The olives are harvested by hand , in order to avoid injury to the fruit. Then, they are transferred via well ventilated container to the mill and there processed within 48 hours from the harvest.

The leaves and twigs are carefully removed from the fruit after wash with cold water. Then it comes the actual extraction using mechanical means only, usually hydraulic pressure or centrifuge, without heating or addition of hot water and without the use of solvents or other chemicals. At first cold pressure, the oil produced is called “extra virgin – first cold pressed“. The olive oil usually remains unfiltered , as filtering removes many nutrients.

– Nutritive value of extra virgin olive oil when cold pressed

The cold pressed extra virgin olive oil stand out for the aroma, color and taste. Also, the acidity is very low.

It is rich in sterols (mainly beta-sitosterol) and fatty acids, mainly oleic acid (omega-9), linoleic acid (omega-3) and linoleic acid (omega-6). Typical is the content of antioxidants such as tocopherols (vitamin E), vitamin C, carotenoids (beta-carotene, xanthophyll), phenols and polyphenols. Also read all physicochemical characteristics of olive oil and what they represent .

– Why do not all manufacturers use the cold pressed to extract the oil;

Using the the cold press method has the outcome to produce a superior quality product, as its purity is not affected by heat or chemicals . However, the cost is the main reason this extraction method is not usually chosen by the majority of olive oil trade. Also, using multiple presses of the olive fruit and heating the olive paste produces more olive oil but of a lower quality.
Anyhow, due to increased demand, there is a tendency to reduce the product cost. Thus, the automated production and processing is chosen in large modern facilities.
The modern industries produce larger quantity of olive oil in low price, but also the procedures followed decrease at a remarkably high percentage the nutritional value of the product.

– What means reduced costs in the case of olive oil;

During centrifugation large producers add High Temperature water for separating oil. Polyphenols, are soluble in water. So, they get rinsed and removed during the procedure.
Beyond the reduce of the nutritional value of olive oil, lack of antioxidant polyphenols also means reduced olive oil lifespan.
While normally the cold pressed extra virgin olive oil can last for two to three years, the industrialized product lasts only a few months.
Furthermore, the treated olive oil gets filtered so it will look clear and transparent. The actual tasty and nutritious extra virgin olive oil is slightly turbid .

– The “trap” of extra virgin olive oil found in big stores
In fact, the product that one finds on the shelves looks nothing like the olive oil consumed by our ancestors. There are few times that consumers end up with an olive oil that has nothing to do with what they think they are buying.
Unfortunately, the usual commercial methods of producing extra virgin olive oil , include compression of the fruit and paste, while warming it up up to temperatures like 210F-300F / 100C-150C degrees or more.
Most of these so called “extra virgin olive oils” are lower quality olive oils which then have been processed to reduce the acidity lower than 1%. So they get to bear misleading the label designation “extra virgin” while the whole process of productions has nothing to do with how to actually make cold pressed extra virgin olive oil.
Only the traditional methods of crushing the fruit using the mill’s stones, or the modern methods by centrifugation produce olive oil that is not heated. This ensures that there are no lost nutrients that are considered essential both in Mediterranean diet to achieve and to maintain a good health. Moreover, olive oils made that way have naturally low acidity.