NZ olive oil growers competing against imported ‘fakes’

Wayne Startup, chief executive of The Village Press olive oil company, says consumers need to know that some oils are not the real oil. Photo: BILL KEARNS/FAIRFAX NZ

New Zealand olive growers are advising consumers to buy local after a scandal about imported olive oils overseas. In Australia tests on 27 imported bottles of extra virgin olive oil sold commonly at supermarkets showed 85% failed to meet Australia’s voluntary standard, and 78% failed an international standard. In the United States, legal action is being filed against importers of “fake” olive oils, oils which are adulterated or not “extra virgin” as advertised.