New United States Standards for Grades of Olive Oil, Effective October 24, 2010
After over sixty years, finally the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released the revised standards for different Grades of Olive Oil. A revision to these standards has not been made since March 22, 1948, when the first grades and levels of quality where delineated for the U.S. market. The first set of standards classified the olive oil as following:
a. U.S. Grade A or U.S. Fancy is the quality of olive oil that possesses the typical greenish to light yellow color of olive oil; possesses a free fatty acid content, calculated as oleic, of not more than 1.4 percent; is free from defects; and is of such quality with respect to odor and flavor as to score not less than 90 points when scored in accordance with the scoring system outlined in this subpart.
b. U.S. Grade B or U.S. Choice is the quality of olive oil that possesses the typical greenish to light yellow color of olive oil; possesses a free fatty acid content, calculated as oleic, of not more than 2.5 percent; is reasonably free from defects; possesses a reasonably good typical odor; possesses a reasonably good typical flavor; and scores not less than 80 points when scored in accordance with the scoring system outlined in this subpart.
c. U.S. Grade C or U.S. Standard is the quality of olive oil that possesses the typical greenish to light yellow color of olive oil; possesses a free fatty acid content, calculated as oleic, of not more than 3.0 percent; is fairly free from defects; possesses a fairly good typical odor; possesses a fairly good typical flavor; and scores not less than 70 points when scored in accordance with the scoring system outlined in this subpart.
d. U.S. Grade D or Substandard is the quality of olive oil that fails to meet the requirements of U.S. Grade C or U.S. Standard.
These terms are not consistent with today’s terminology for olive oil within the industry. The U.S. industry requested the revision because they wanted to create fairness in the marketplace. The new United States Standards for Grades of Olive Oil and Olive-Pomace Oil will be effective October 24, 2010. The new release, finally, describes the difference between olive oil, virgin olive oil and olive-pomace oil, facilitating “orderly marketing by providing a convenient basis for buying and selling, for establishing quality control programs, and for determining loan values”. The new standards will enforce the use of terminology consistent with the marketplace promote truth in labeling, and provide a basis for enforcement by State and Federal agencies if these products are mislabeled. The following are the new grades for olive oil:
a. U.S. Extra Virgin Olive Oil is virgin olive oil which has excellent flavor and odor (median of defects equal to zero and median of fruitiness greater than zero) and a free fatty acid content, expressed as oleic acid, of not more than 0.8 grams per 100 grams, and meets additional requirements as outlined.
b. U.S. Virgin Olive Oil is virgin olive oil which has reasonably good flavor and odor (median of defects between zero and 2.5 and median of fruitiness greater than zero) and a free fatty acid content, expressed as oleic acid, of not more than 2.0 grams per 100 grams, and meets additional requirements as appropriate. Olive oil that falls into this classification shall not be graded above “U.S. Virgin Olive Oil.
c. U.S. Virgin Olive Oil Not Fit For Human Consumption Without Further Processing, sometime designated as U.S. Lampante Virgin Olive Oil, is virgin olive oil which has poor flavor and odor (median of defects between 2.5 and 6.0 or when the median of defects is less than or equal to 2.5 and the median of fruit is zero), a free fatty acid content, expressed as oleic acid, of more than 2.0 grams per 100 grams, and meets other additional requirements. Olive oil that falls into this classification shall not be graded above "U.S. Virgin Olive Oil Not Fit for Human Consumption Without Further Processing." It is intended for refining or for purposes other than food use.
d. U.S. Olive Oil is the oil consisting of a blend of refined olive oil and virgin olive oils fit for consumption without further processing. It has a free fatty acid content, expressed as oleic acid, of not more than 1.0 gram per 100 grams, has acceptable odor and flavor characteristic of “virgin olive oil,” and meets other additional requirements. Olive oil that falls into this classification shall not be graded above “U.S. Olive Oil." The maximum level permitted of total alpha-tocopherol in the final product is 200 mg/kg.
e. U.S. Refined Olive Oil is the olive oil obtained from virgin olive oils by refining methods that do not lead to alterations in the initial glyceridic structure (basic glycerin-fatty acid structure). It has a free fatty acid content, expressed as oleic acid, of not more than 0.3 grams per 100 grams, is flavorless and odorless and meets other additional requirements. Olive oil that falls into this classification shall not be graded above “U.S. Refined Olive Oil” (this is a limiting rule). The addition of alpha-tocopherol is permitted to restore natural tocopherol lost in the refining process. The maximum level is 200 mg/kg of total alpha-tocopherol in the final product.
These new grades are consistent with the International Olive Council (IOC) trade standards for olive and olive-pomace oil. The IOC develops standards of quality used by major olive oil producing countries, including Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal, and Turkey. The IOC is an intergovernmental organization created by the United Nations that is headquartered in Madrid, Spain representing the marketing of over 95 percent of the world’s olive oil production. The IOC is responsible for administering the International Agreement on Olive Oil. The United States is not a member of the IOC but has observer status.
The revision of these standards is an important first step for the olive oil market in the U.S., especially since the olive oil consumption and production has been increasing exponentially in the last two decades.
At Gourmet Cooking And Living, along with our Italian Olive Oil Club, we take this situation very seriously, since we pride our company in providing our clients with Superior Category Extra Virgin Olive Oils, always made to the highest standards and appreciate that there finally will be improvements in the industry for the U.S. market and its consumers. The Olive Oils that we send to our clients are all from Italy and meet the IOC's regulations as well as keep in line with the European Community's certifications: DOP, IGP, Organic, etc. Although most of the standards available today in the U.S., Europe and any other olive oil producing countries, consider “Extra Virgin Olive Oil’’ only olive oil with free acidity not greater than 0.8%, the majority of the olive oils selected by the Italian Olive Oil Club have a free acidity between 0.1% and 0.2% and in no case greater than 0.3%.