The Manufacturer's Ultimate Guide To Buying Organic Olive Oil in Bulk

Posted by Hannah Broaddus

The Manufacturer's Ultimate Guide To Buying Organic Olive Oil in BulkIf you buy organic olive oil in bulk for your company, here's all the basics that you're going to want to know.  We'll review the best questions we've gotten over the years about Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and give you some straight-forward and helpful answers.

Answers to questions like:

  1. How is organic olive oil made?
  2. How is organic extra virgin olive oil diffferent than regular extra virgin?
  3. Is "certified organic" different than just organic?
  4. Is organic olive oil always "extra virgin" olive oil too?
  5. What is the price of organic olive oil, especially compared to regular extra virgin olive oil?
  6. What makes the price of organic olive oil change?
  7. What kind of quality documentation should I expect?
  8. Is Organic Olive Oil also certified Kosher?
  9. What kind of packaging does organic olive oil come in?

How is organic extra virgin olive oil made?

Special organic olives are grown using documented organic practices.  Throught the year, the growing process is audited to make sure that they're following all best organic practices.  Later, the pressing process at the olive oil mill is also reviewed.  

At harvest time (between October and February), the organic olives are picked and washed with cold water. They are ground into paste and spun in a centrifuge which extracts the oil from the olive mixture. This is known as the “first cold press" of the olives, though it’s actually spun instead of pressed in most modern systems. This process usually occurs within 24 hours from the time the olives are harvested.

The Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil is stored in a large tank, separate from traditional, non-organic olive oils. 

How is organic extra virgin olive oil different than regular extra virgin?

They're actually quite similar, minus the documentation.

In terms of how the oil is made and the final quality of the oil, both Organic Extra Virgin and regular Extra Virgin are very similar oils. They're both made from the first press or spin of the olives. They both have the same requirements for acidity, chemical make up and sensory tests that allow them to be called Extra Virgin.  

The primary difference is that organic olive oil has been made from olives that are certified to be grown organically, and an acredited agency is auditing every step along the way.  They look at how the trees are grown, make sure that pesticides and GMOs aren't being used, and that the pressing of the organic oil is separated from the pressing of regular oil.  Later, an organic certifying agency also checks the process of every supplier or distributor down the supply chain, as the oil makes it's way to you.  

The bigger picture is that olive trees in general are a very hearty tree. They require little to no pesticide intervention to grow olives normally (unlike, for example, apple crops here in the US). Most growers, especially those outside of the US, don’t use any chemicals on any of their trees.  

So in conclusion, organic EVOO and regular EVOO are very similar.  However, the organic certifying process documents and guarantees this fact for consumers.

Is "certified organic" different than just organic?

Yes, those are two different things, especially to manufacturers.

Let's start with a good example.  Let's pretend you are growing lettuce in your backyard garden, and you're following all of the organic practices set forth by the USDA.  When you pick your lettuce, most people would agree that you're picking an organic vegetable.  If it is grown and stored and cooked using all of the organic growing processes, it is an organic product.  This is often called "organically grown" or "grown using organic methods".  This requires that your family and friends who eat your lettuce trust your word, that you did in fact grow it organically.

However, your lettuce is not going to be considered "certified organic".  That's because you don't have an auditor coming in with their clipboard to check what you've put on the soil, test the residue on the leaves, and provide a document to your neighbors to say that you are, in fact, growing your lettuce organically. And they checked. And double checked. 

USDA Certified Organic Bulk Olive OilThis difference in definition is important for manufacturers.  If you want to sell an organic product, you'll need to decide if you want to simply state "grown organically" on the label (and you must follow all USDA, labeling and organic requirements that go along with that), or if you want to certify your product USDA Certified Organic.  If you want to sell it as certified organic, this means that you'll need to go through the organic certification process by a USDA accredited agency.  Once that happens, then you can use the little USDA organic logo on your label. 

If you want to go through the Organic Certification process, you're going to need to purchase ingredients that are also certified organic and have the paperwork and documentation to back it up.  You'll have to pass that documentation along to your certifier to get your own paperwork completed.

Is organic olive oil always "extra virgin" olive oil too?

All organic olive oil that you find is going to be extra virgin or virgin olive oil.  This is because all of the other grades are processed in some way.  Most of what is available in the US is Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, simply because that is the majority of what is grown and available in the world.  You can technically buy Organic Virgin Olive Oil, but you probably won't because there's so little of it available to buy.

Why is this?  Producers can get a better price for Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil than Organic Virgin Olive Oil.  Since the only difference in whether it is Extra Virgin or Virgin is how well the olives are cared for before and after the harvest (aka, the corresponding acidity level as a result of this care), farmers with organic groves will give some extra love those organic olives in particular.  

Organic oil is in such high demand, and they get more money for it, so the extra care and focus is worthwhile.  By trying to avoid things that damage the olives (like bruising during picking, sunlight after harvesting or waiting too long to be pressed) they can ensure that they get more money for their oil by producing a higher qulaity Extra Virgin Olive Oil grade.  

What is the price of organic olive oil, especially compared to regular extra virgin olive oil?

Here's the price ranges we've seen over the last 5 years or so, for those two grades.  Prices vary all the time, and currently fall somewhere in between.  This gives you a good comparison to decide if you should buy regular or Organic EVOO, and how much extra you'll spend to get the organic documentation.

Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil

$2.20 - $3.00 /Lb
= $645.26 - $1,257.00 /drum
= $4,604.60 - 6,279.00 /tote

 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

$1.54 - $2.41 /Lb.
= $921.80 - $1,009.79 /drum
= $3,223.22 - $5,044.13 /tote

 

What makes the price of organic olive oil change?

The price of organic olive oil changes all the time, just like all the other grades do.  It depends on a number of factors:

  • Global supply and demand
  • How the commodity market looks at the moment
    • Includes how the harvest was over the last few years, and 
    • Predictions of the next harvest/crop to come
  • The packaging and volume that you buy

What kind of quality documentation should I expect?

You should expect an Organic Certificate from a USDA accredited agency.  

These certificates may come from the US company that you buy from or from overseas.  The rule of thumb is, these documents should come from the last company that packed the oil.  Therefore, if your supplier buys in drums and sells the oil to you in drums, they don't need to have their own organic certificate.  However, if they re-pack the oil they do need to have an organic certificate for their own location.

You should also expect all of the other most common quality documents for bulk olive oil.  This includes:

  • Certificate of Analysis
  • Spec Sheet
  • Kosher Certification
  • Non-GMO Statement
  • Organic Certificate

Is Organic Olive Oil also certified Kosher?

Normally yes, most suppliers offer olive oil that is certified Kosher.  Organic olive oil, given that it is the most expensive olive oil out there, normally will come with a Kosher Certification as well.

This isn't a given though-- just the most common thing.  Ask any supplier for a current Kosher Certificate before making an assumption.

What kind of packaging does organic olive oil come in?

Organic olive oil comes in all the same packaging that the other grades come in.  When you're buying from Centra Foods, your packaging options include:

Resources

If you'd like to learn more about organic olive oil, visit the Organic section of our blog.

Or if you're a manufacturer starting the sourcing process, we highly recommend downloading the eBook The Ultimate Guide To Buying Bulk Olive Oil For Manufacturing.

Topics: Organic, Food Manufacturing

 

 

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