In her video, she states, “I’m at Costco, and this is your annual reminder that if your olive oil doesn’t have a harvest date, it’s not real.”
“The lot number doesn’t matter. Best buy doesn’t matter. It has to have, as you can see, a harvest date to be real.”
“There’s no regulation on olive oil; it could be up to 75% or 80% vegetable oil, without a harvest date. If it has a harvest date, it’s 100% olive oil,” she concludes.
So, let’s go over what they’re teaching the actual chefs. If an olive oil has a “best before” date and a lot number but no harvest date, it’s technically meeting basic labeling requirements, but the brand isn’t being fully transparent. High-quality, real extra-virgin olive oils almost always include a harvest date. Without it, you can’t tell if the oil was made six months ago or three years ago.
And “best before” dates can be up to 18–24 months after bottling, not harvesting. The oils may also be blended from multiple harvests or countries. Older or lower-quality oils lose flavor and antioxidants, so that is why brands may avoid disclosing the harvest date.
In addition, dark glass is better than plastic for protecting oil from light, which breaks down the oil. That said, packaging can’t fix oil that’s already old or low-quality!
I actually currently have two olive oils in my cabinet right now, so I frantically ran (okay, walked like five steps) to my kitchen to check!
Sadly, neither one of them had a harvest date!!! I was shocked. I am definitely making a trip to the grocery store soon to check out other options. Let me know if you have any good olive oil brands that disclose the harvest date in the comments!