F.A.Q.

According to the international standards there are 6 types of olive oil and they are sorted as below according to free fat acids they have in oleic acid form. Among all the olive oil which has standards mentioned below is natural extra virgin olive oil which in all categories including its wholesale price and retail price is the type which has the highest price.  It isn’t mixed with another olive oil and the acid proportion is very low.

1- ) Natural extra virgin olive oil: It has a peculiar taste and odor and the acid ratio it includes is not more than 0.8 gr in 100 gr.

2- ) Natural first olive oil: The free fat acidity in oleic form per every 100 gr not more than 2.0gr.

3- ) Natural second olive oil: This is the olive oil which has a free fat acidity per 100 gr is not more than 3.3 gr.

4- ) Lampante virgin olive oil: This is the olive oil which has a free fat acidity in oleic form per every 100 gr 3, 4 gr and above. This oil is not in the category of edible olive oil. But are processed in the olive oil refinery plant or used as a raw material in the soap industry.

5- ) Refined olive oil:  After 3, 3 % and above olive oil is processed in the refinery plant the acid proportion is dropped to  0,3 %. The peculiar odor of the olive oil and most part of the minerals and vitamins disappear after the acidity dropping process where high vapour pressure is used. In order to be delivered to the final consumer specific proportion of natural virgin oil must be mixed with it (60 % extra virgin olive oil, 40% refined olive oil).

6- ) Riviera olive oil: It is a mixture of extra virgin olive oil with refined olive oil. The free fat acidity in oleic form per every 100 gr must not be more than 1 gr.

ACID RATIO RANGE %                   TYPE OF OLIVE OIL

0.2 – 0, 8                                                 Extra Virgin Olive Oil

0.9 – 2, 0                                                 Natural First Olive Oil

2.1 – 3, 3                                                 Natural Second Olive Oil

3.4 –    >                                                  Lampante Virgin Olive Oil

<       0.3                                                 Refined Olive Oil

0.3 – 1, 0                                                Riviera Olive Oil

Today olive oil is mainly produced in Continuous Process System factories. Very rarely facilities as in the colloquial language called stone-press or water-press are used. These are mills where a lot of human power and old techniques are used. However, there are almost no stone-press mills that are actively used.

Continuous Process System olive oil factories are composed of 5 different units and the raw olive which is brought to the factory in order to be processed passes through these units and are turned into olive oil. These units;

1-Washing

2-Crushing

3-Mixer

4-Decanter

5-Separator

Let’s give a Brief Explanation of Olive Oil Process;

The olive that is picked from its branch by the villagers during harvest time (October-November) is sacked and brought to the olive oil factory. First of all olive is separated from its branches and leaves automatically. After being washed thoroughly the remaining olive is washed down and with the help of mechanical hammers broken into pieces while some hot water is put in the system. After that it is turned into a dough it is put in a mixer.

The inner surface of the mixer is covered with stainless steel and this inner surface is a little heated by hot water which passes between the inner and outer surface and the dough is turned inside the unit for 20 minutes. The aim of this process is to help release the oil in the olive dough. After reaching a certain decomposition the oil in the dough is pumped into a machine called decanter by a mono pump.  The decanter again sends the juice and settlings of the oil which is obtained by centrifugal force to a unit called separator. The separator separates the olive oil from olive juice and the settlings turns it into an edible form.

We have tried to explain how olive oil is produced by not going into too many details. For further information please contact us by sending an e-mail to info@orgamis.com.tr

The main olive oil acid compositions are as follows:

Oleic Acid: It is a mono-saturated fatty acid, there is between 55-83 % proportions in the olive oil.

Linoleic Acid: It is a polyunsaturated fatty acid, there is between 3, 5-21 % proportion in the olive oil.

Linolenic Acid: It is a polyunsaturated fatty acid, there is between 0, 2-1, 0 % proportion in the olive oil.

Palmitic Acid: It is a saturated fatty acid, there is between 7.5-20 % proportions in the olive oil.

Stearic Acid: It is a saturated fatty acid, there is between 0.5-5.0 % proportions in the olive oil.

The composition for olive oil acid; maturity period, variety of the olive, cultivating the olive, depends on the climate conditions, but the most important thing that affects this composition is whether the olive had a contact with the soil or not. The olive should definitely not have contact with the soil during the harvest time. The acid proportion in the olive oil particles in the olive that had a contact with the soil has a tendency to increase. Especially when the olives which fall off because of wind or precipitation stay on the ground for more than a few days, the olive oil  that is obtained from these olives is no more edible , but  falls into the classification of lampante virgin olive oil and is inedible.  Since the acidity is high and tastes bad.

Another factor that affects the acid proportion is, the freshly picked olive from its branch being kept in the sacks for a long time. Because of the employment cost from time to time the farmers pick the harvest by only family members and this means the olives stay in the sacks until the harvest is over. Therefore because of the awaiting the fermented acidity of the oil in the olive increases.

Another factor that increases the acidity of the olive oil is the insects. When the routine care is not taken with the trees, insects appear and these creatures play an important role in the increase of the acid proportion.

Another issue that should be considered is keeping the water in the washing unit clean. Because the increase in the acidity of the oil obtained from the olive that is not washed and rinsed in clean water is inevitable

In addition to these, the acid proportion of the olive oil that is obtained the harvest from two neighboring fields which has had no contact with soil, was not kept in sacks for long, was washed with clean water thoroughly with the same weight and picked in the same circumstances may for example weigh 0, 4 in one and 0, 6 in the other.  It is difficult to explain why. It makes us think about the possibility of variability even with the difference in the meters of the size.

It is a term that is usually used colloquially and by olive oil traders. The term diziem is used for olive oil that has a acidity proportion between 0,2 % and 0,9 % . For example, olive oil with o.5 acidity is mentioned as 5 diziem.

It is true for olive oil. If you are not a tasting expert, the best olive oil for you is the one that you liked when you tasted. Although the acid proportion in the olive oil is an important factor that determines the quality of it, it can definitely not be proclaimed that the quality of the olive oil increases as the acid proportion decreases. For example, the aroma of the 0,8 acidity oil could be intenser than another 0,3 acidity oil. In a nutshell, the aromatic component of the olive oil with the highest acidity could be higher than the one which has low acidity.

All the experts agree that olive oil should be consumed raw. Because the European continent is the native land of olive, they have learnt about the olive oil centuries before other people from other continents and this liquid has been part of the culture in the lives of European people. Because of this, the olive oil that is consumed in this continent is 75% consumed in raw form. There are even people who can drink olive oil with a glass. However, Asia, North America and Latin America realized the benefits of olive oil recently and nowadays these communities increased their olive oil consumption.

It is especially recommended that some amount of olive oil is consumed before breakfast. In case the taste disturbs you because you are yet hungry, lighten the taste by adding some lemon juice in it.   You can also consume olive oil especially at breakfast; together with boiled eggs, boiled potato, tomato, homemade paprika or tomato paste green/black table olive.

The most important thing that we should be careful with is to ensure that olive oil has no contact with direct sunlight. If you can’t provide this your olive oil will soon be spoilt.

Another significant point related to this is the package of the olive oil. We would especially like to highlight that the following four materials chrome nickel, glass, tin can (preferably lacquered tin plate) and pot are the best to keep your olive oil in. It is important that you keep the olive oil in these recommended containers in a cool and humid-free environment. Another property of olive oil is that it absorbs the ambient odor very soon. One of the mistakes of housewives is to put the oil they have used in the in the same cupboard with the propane cylinder which is a great mistake. Since the odor of gas gets into your olive oil and it tastes bad. If required the list of the above recommendations is as follows;

OLIVE OIL in

A-) Odorless
B-) humid-free
C-) Dark
D-) Cool environment

Must be kept in

1-) Pot
2- ) Chrome nickel
3- ) Tin can (preferably lacquered tin plate)
4- ) Glass Containers.

When the temperature drops, all the natural olive oils freeze. The olive oil frozen is at the same time a proof that it is pure. If olive oil doesn’t freeze in a cold environment, there is a problem with your product.  However, it is not possible to mention a definite and exact freezing point as in water. The reasons are briefly:

Olive oil is composed of substances that are saponified (% 98,5-99,5) and unsaponified.  (% 0,5-1,5). Saponified substances are glyceride (triglycerides, diglycerides and mono glycerides) waks, phospholipids where unsponified substances are hydrocarbons, sterols, alcohol, phenolic components, tocopherols, chlorophyll, carotene, aromatic components, etc. Unsaponified substances are effective in sensory properties and stability of olive oil.  97-98 % of glycerides are triglycerides.

The main fatty acid composition of olive oil are as follows:

Oleic Acid: It is a mono-saturated fatty acid, there is between 55-83 % proportions in the olive oil.

Linoleic Acid: It is a polyunsaturated fatty acid, there is between 3, 5-21 % proportion in the olive oil.

Linolenic Acid: It is a polyunsaturated fatty acid, there is between 0, 2-1, 0 % proportion in the olive oil.

Palmitic Acid: It is a saturated fatty acid, there is between 7.5-20 % proportions in the olive oil.

Stearic Acid: It is a saturated fatty acid, there is between 0.5-5.0 % proportions in the olive oil.

The composition for olive oil acid varies due to maturity period, variety of the olive, cultivating the olive, the climate conditions.

The fatty acid composition affects the freezing point. Because water is a simple composite, the freezing point is definite. Olive oil is a complex component which has triglyceride and waks, and doesn’t have a definite freezing point as water does.

Olive oil is a natural product and freezes at different temperatures due to its years and fatty acid composition. Because of this reason there is no such definite data as olive oil’s freezing point. When you examine scientific sources, there are different data related to the freezing point of the olive oil. (such as -6 – +120C). According to AOCS’s (American Oil Chemists’ Society) data the freezing / melting point of olive oil is -3-0 0C.  In addition to this, there is no definite information in literature related to its freezing point and freezing time due to temperature.

Cold press method is a subject related to the temperature of water during olive oil production. In order to get into the category of cold pressed the temperature during production must be at most 25 degrees. Because high temperature affects the nutritional value and the presence of pleasant odor of olive oil in a negative way when the aromatic components and nutritional values of olive oil obtained in low water temperature is compared to other methods, it is much higher. In a nutshell, the only difference of cold press is it is produced by decreasing the temperature of water used during the production state.

The difference of olive oils with the early harvest inscription is it is the oil of olives that are green and haven’t completed their maturity period. The harvest period in our country is usually during October and December and the olives in this period compared to the green ones have darker color and have oil rate. However, in order to have early harvest olive oil, the olives must be picked at the beginning or in the middle of October and cultivated before they get dark.  When these olives are cultivated the oil rate is a lot less than its olive form, but the excellence of the oil is high. The early harvest olive oil has a little bitterness and a fresh leaf scent.

Stone-pressed olive oil is produced by old production techniques after a long and exhausting period. The stones that turn around its axis turns the olives into a dough by crushing the olives in the tank. After the olive which was turned into a dough put in special bags, they are smoothed down by the press workman and placed in the hydraulic press properly. The press closes slowly and squeezes the dough in the bags. During this squeezing the oil that seeps away is collected in the tank underneath   before it is taken in another container. Afterwards the presses are unfastened, the bags are opened and hot water is flushed in the sacs by a hose and replaced in the press machine and squeezed again. Thus, most of the oil in the dough is taken.  The olive oil that is obtained from olive juice and settlings is distilled, the settlings and the juice is separated, and this oil is called STONE PRESSED olive oil. When we compare the stone-pressed product with the other olive oils, we can say that the values in it are richer due to the production method used.

It is made with the mixture of refined olive oil and extra virgin olive oil. It is the cheapest of all the types of olive oils in the market. The reason is the mixture. For example if the price of the extra virgin oil is 1 unit, the refined olive oil’s value is 0, 6 units. Therefore, while the price of extra virgin olive oil is 1 unit, riviera which is obtained from the mixture of these is 0,8 unit.

There are vitamins A, D, E, and K in it.

Most of the production of olive and olive oil takes place in the Aegean and Marmara Regions. According to the list of cities below Balıkesir, İzmir, Aydın and  Muğla , produce to a large extent edible olive oil while Manisa and Bursa produce green and black table olives. The region which is called as Gulf region (Gulf oil) starts from Yeni Sakran town in Aliaga/ Izmir, includes Zeytindag and Dikili region , lays along the Altınova in Balıkesir, Ayvalık, Gomec, Edremit, Akcay, Altınoluk districts and Kücükkuyu town coastline and the olive oil obtained from the North Aegean Gulf region won quality awards in international  competitions.

Cities where olive and olive oil is intensely produced are as follows;

-Izmir         -Gaziantep

-Aydın        -Canakkale

-Muğla        -Hatay

-Balıkesir    -Manisa

-Bursa         -Antalya 

-Icel              -Kilis

In addition to this, there are cities where olive trees grow. For example, in Derik town (Mardin) some olive trees grow but doesn’t have any economic value. There are also some olive trees in Trabzon, Artvin and Samsun.

The total annual olive oil production in Turkey is approximately 150.000 tons.

According to the data from TOBB (Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges), Association of Aegean olive and olive oil exporters there are approximately 160.000.000 olive trees in Turkey.

According to the data from the Turkish statistics institute approximately 73 million 118 thousand people live in Turkey.  According to the data from Aegean Exporters Association Olive oil consumption in Turkey is around 50.000 tons. According to these numbers olive oil consumption ratio per capita in Turkey is between 700-800 gr. This ratio in Greece increases up to 20kg.