Unboxed: 5 extra virgin olive oils to support heart health
Tradition meets quality, sustainability and innovation with these novel olive oils.
Sustainability and environmental responsibility are the driving forces behind this USDA-certified organic olive oil, which is also Certified Carbon Neutral. Using numbered bottles, the product is 100% traceable to its origins in Greece, where all of the olives are hand-picked and crushed within three hours. Additionally, each bottle is nitrogen capped to ensure optimum product freshness.
Innovation is at the core of this 100% EU-certified organic extra-virgin olive oil from Spanish company Ecoprolive. The oil is manufactured from pitted olives—a pioneering technique that greatly reduces the water needed for the extraction process. This is maintained in a controlled temperature environment and not exposed to oxygen before packaging, in order to preserve antioxidant levels and freshness. All of the leftover materials (olive pulp, etc.) are upcycled by the company into forward-thinking products such as an olive-based prebiotic fiber and a vitamin E-rich olive extract that can be used cosmetically.
This single-variety, USDA Organic olive oil comes from Italy and is estate grown, milled and bottled. This is the only commercial olive oil made from the variety Biancolilla Centinara, which was discovered in the wild by Bona Furtuna’s Chief Scientist, Pasquale Marino. He cloned the root stock from one of the two remaining trees found in the wild and planted approximately 5,000 at the La Furtuna Estate in Sicily, thereby preserving the variety from extinction.
This USDA-certified organic oil emphasizes purity, thanks to its certification by the Clean Label Project, a transparency-focused non-profit organization that tests products in an accredited laboratory for 130 harmful contaminants and toxins. Made in Tunisia and packaged in Italy, this product has also received Clean Label Awards for “Purity,” “Pesticide Free” and “Antioxidant Superiority.
It would be remiss not to include at least one of the many quality extra virgin olive oils from California in this line up. This one hails from the Capay Valley, where it is cultivated on the tribal lands of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation. These estate-grown Arbequina variety olives are harvested and immediately milled on the premises, to ensure maximum freshness. Each bottle of this unrefined and unfiltered extra virgin olive oil features the harvest dates and is California Olive Oil Council Certified Extra Virgin.
It would be remiss not to include at least one of the many quality extra virgin olive oils from California in this line up. This one hails from the Capay Valley, where it is cultivated on the tribal lands of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation. These estate-grown Arbequina variety olives are harvested and immediately milled on the premises, to ensure maximum freshness. Each bottle of this unrefined and unfiltered extra virgin olive oil features the harvest dates and is California Olive Oil Council Certified Extra Virgin.
May is International Mediterranean Diet Month, a time to pay tribute to a dietary lifestyle that is as old as it is venerated, and one that has proven time and again the benefits of consuming a balanced and varied diet that is low in saturated fats and high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids. In addition to fresh fruits and vegetables, grains, beans, nuts and fish, the Mediterranean diet derives many of its health benefits from the liquid gold that pulses through its veins: extra virgin olive oil.
Demonstrated to reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes and death from heart disease—among other benefits—extra virgin olive oil is becoming more and more familiar, as well as accessible in U.S. pantries. The same is true for the wide range of natural food products that are starting to take advantage of the flavor and nutritional benefits this ingredient has to offer.
To reap its rewards, however, it’s important to stock products with certain characteristics and added quality assurances. Making sure that the olive oil is extra virgin is key, as is looking for additional guarantees in terms of where it was produced, traceability and different quality certifications.
And despite having been a dietary staple in many cultures for over a thousand years, olive oil is still inspiring innovation, with companies coming up with new and better ways to ensure quality and peace of mind for consumers.
Check out these singular extra virgin olive oils from near and far.
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