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Olive oil has always been
a main ingredient in the Mediterranean kitchen. Next to wheat
and wine, olive oil or “liquid gold”, is one of the
oldest known foodstuffs in the world.
Over 8000 years ago, in Jericho, olive oil was already being pressed
out of wild olives. The Assyrians used olive oil for their oil
lamps. In ancient Egypt the valuable liquid was put into graves
as a gift. Already in those times olive oil was appreciated for
its excellent qualities. The olive tree is a Mediterranean cultivated
plant and about 97 % of all olive trees grow in the Mediterranean
area. Here we can also find the biggest production of olive oil.
Spain alone produces up to 800.000 tons of oil yearly.
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This
tree is a long-living, undemanding plant. Because of its
knobbly wood, its leather-like leaves and its deep root
system it is able to survive even the longest drought.
Its blossom time is in summer and harvest time is from
the beginning of November until February. An olive tree
can produce up to 100 kilograms of olives depending upon
the watering and fertilizing.
Most of the olives that are used for oil production are
harvested at the beginning of November. They are either
harvested with machines which shake them down from the
trees and then caught in nets which are spread out under
them or they are picked by hand. They should be pressed
no longer than three days after picking. In the traditional
olive oil production process the olives are first washed,
then ground with the pit between large millstones at the
mill.
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The cloudy mash
of liquid and fruit meat is then spread on big mats. These mats
are stacked on top of each other and then mechanically or hydraulically
pressed under high pressure, adding cold water.
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The
oil-water mixture is then separated in centrifuges to
filter the resulting oil, which will be called Virgin
Extra oil if it reaches the highest quality and flavour
levels. If it does not reach such levels, it will be called
Virgin oil. The remaining mixture can be pressed a second
and even a third time, using hot water instead of cold
in order to obtain more oil, which is called plain “olive
oil”, and which is often mixed comercially with
a small amount of Virgin or Extra Virgin oil to add flavour.
Finally, chemical products can be used for a last pressing,
obtaining Rest-oil. |
The “green
gold” of the south is not only singular in its
taste; it is also very healthy and has found its way
into many households. With daily use, olive oil’s
unsaturated fatty acids can help prevent heart and circulation
diseases and even cancer. This is in contrast to animal
fats, which have a high ratio of cholesterol. In addition,
olive oil contains a lot of valuable minerals like phosphorous,
magnesium, potassium, calcium and different trace elements
like iron, copper, zinc and iodine. This product is
also rich in vitamin A and E, which turns it into a
valuable ingredient for the cosmetic industry, because
of its very beneficial effect on hair and skin. So,
it is not surprising that olive oil is very much appreciated
and used all over the world.
Text:
A.K.
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