Aussie made the best choice for consumers
By Laura Thomas
On a supermarket shelf crowded with bottles labelled “extra virgin”, it can be hard for Australian olive oil brands to stand out from the crowd.
But a recent review by consumer advocacy group Choice is putting homegrown in the consumer spotlight, after its testing ranked Australian extra virgin olive oils as highly as other well-known Mediterranean imports on the market.
As part of the Choice review, a selection of 30 imported and homegrown olive oils underwent blind chemical and sensory testing at the NSW Department of Primary Industry Laboratory Services, Wagga Wagga.
Of the 13 oils recommended to consumers, seven were Australian-made.
And while this result won’t come as much of a surprise to industry insiders, it represents a big win for consumer confidence.
Australian olive growers produce around 14.5 million litres of olive oil each year, more than 90% of which is premium olive oil. This equates to less than 1% of the world’s total supply, satisfying just half of Australian domestic demand.
But thanks to stringent quality standards, Australia is now widely recognised as a global leader in quality olive oil production and demand for homegrown continues to grow.
Australian Olive Association Chief Executive Officer Michael Southan said the organisation was committed to industry development and ongoing consumer education played an important role.
“I don’t think the results of the review will come as a surprise to many in our industry, but for consumers to be recommended Australian oils as some of the very best on the market is invaluable,” he said.
“We may be relatively new to the thousands-year old Mediterranean industry and we certainly can’t compete with the quantity produced in the global powerhouses of Spain, Italy and Greece.
“But there is no question our oil is some of the very best there is.”
Mr Southan said a key factor in this is industry code of best practice, OliveCare®, which provided a standard of excellence for Australian producers, supporting industry and boosting brand integrity and reputation at home and abroad.
While certification is voluntary, close to 90% of Australian-produced olive oil is currently certified under the OliveCare® program.
“For consumers, seeing the OliveCare® logo on the bottle means they are guaranteed that what what they’re about to buy is quality, homegrown Australian EVOO that has been produced to exceed the highest industry standards,” Mr Southan said.
“There’s no better choice than Australian-made.”
Check out the full review and results on the Choice website.