Across the board, are ALL oils really that different when you compare the organic vs. the non-organic versions of them? Is organic extra virgin olive oil that different from regular extra virgin olive oil, or organic canola oil that different than regular canola oil?

The answer really depends on the type of oil and the fruit or seed used to produce it, and requires that we dive a little deeper.

If you were used to eating cereal with skim milk for years, you would sure notice if you poured heavy cream on that cereal instead of your routine skim milk. You would find yourself in for quite a rude awakening!

Like every food -- how the milk or cream is produced, what it comes from and any of its further processing all comes together to create unique product traits. These characteristics make each make product taste and feel different from each other even though they all still come from the same raw ingredient. 

Olive oil works in this exact same way. Each different grade is produced differently: one grade is the first press, while others are refined or come from a different part of the olive. How the grade is made produces a unique oil, and you can taste and see the difference between each. 

Just like in our example about the heavy cream that you wouldn't put in your cereal, you will want to choose the right grade of olive oil for exactly what you are making. 

It can be extremely hard to know exactly what you're getting when it comes to oil. Oils are produced in many different ways: some might be extracted using solvents like hexane, and others are expeller pressed with a mechanical press that physically squeezes the oil out. 

How oil is produced may not be clearly marked on a retail or bulk label, which makes things even more confusing.  Sometimes descriptors about production methods can be found in the title, other times clues are left in an "abbreviated form", or the details may be found only in the description on a spec sheet. To make matters worse, some vendors make no mention at all on how the oil is made on any QA or Marketing documents, so you may just have to know what's "industry standard".  This puts it in your hands to ask the right questions and get the proper documentation. 

Centra Foods always tries to be as clear as possible. That's why, today, we will explain what the solvent extracting, expeller pressing, and cold pressing methods all look like in detail. When explaining these processes, we will be referring to canola oil specifically because it's one of the oils that is commonly expelled in all three variations. You will notice these processes are going to look very similar for many different type of other seed oils too, so you can apply these general ideas across the board with vegetable oils.

The term "high oleic" can be applied to many different types of oils: canola, sunflower, safflower, and more. High oleic oils continue to see a spike in popularity, especially in the natural food manufacturing industry. 

Why high oleic oils?  High oleic oils are a premium option that have a healthier fat composition, a longer shelf life, a higher heat tolerance and an extended fry life. For these reasons and many more, this ingredient is a perfect fit for natural chips, popcorn, and other baked or fried snacks. 

Canola and sunflower oil are both commonly used oils in the natural food industry. They are light in color and flavor, and you'll find them used in products like baked goods, snacks, granolas, bars and used for frying. 

Similar as they are they also have their differences. Today we will dive into the rundown of what is the same and what the difference is when it comes to these two oils. 

Depending on what information you read, you may hear that sunflower is healthy from some and unhealthy from others.  So which is it? 

To help those grappling with all this conflicting information, we'd like to weigh in: the answer is not as straightforward as "good" or "bad".  Due to the ins and outs of the specific fat makeup of the oil (aka, what KIND of fats are found inside the oil molecules) and how oil is made, this discussion can be confusing and there's a lot of room for gray area and misinformation.

To make this discussion even less straight forward, the type of sunflower oil that was commonly used in the 80s and 90s is becoming less and less prevalent. So we are not always talking about the same thing when we say "sunflower oil."

There are a few grades of olive oil that are commonly used in manufacturing, which you may not recognize from a retail shelf. While you will most often see Extra Virgin Olive Oil on a retail shelf, there are other (lower) grades of olive oil that are sometimes used in manufacturing.

If you are currently researching bulk olive oil for food/body care production or you are a manufacturer, it will help to know the differences between these different grades.  Today, we will walk through how these olive oil grades are each made, along with how they compare to each other.

Olive oil is simply the juice that comes from an olive. The olive is a fruit, grown on the olive tree. Want to know more than that? The answer to exactly how olive oil is made will depend solely on the type of olive oil, or grade, that it is.

We are going to do a fairly basic review of the grades of olive oil and how they are made. There are many ways you can learn these things whether they are visual slideshows, videos, or reading.

For an easy step-by-step review on how olive oil is made we recommend watching the slide share presentation below:

It can be hard to know exactly what you may be getting when it comes to oil. Oils are produced in multiple ways. Some are expelled using solvents like hexane, while others are expeller-pressed with a mechanical press that squeezes the oil out.

How the oil is produced isn't always clearly marked either. Sometimes it is described in the title, in full works or abbreviated form, or sometimes you might find that it is only described on the spec sheet. Worse still, some industrial suppliers make no mention of how the oil is made on any documents. It will be in your hands to make sure you ask all the right questions and receive the proper documentation.

Here at Centra Foods, we make it a point to be as clear and explicit as possible. That is why today I will explain what solvent expelling, expeller pressing and cold pressing methods all look like in detail.

High quality, non-GMO and organic oils are in such high demand. If you use specialty oils or natural oils as a bulk ingredient in your manufacturing facility you are probably already well aware.

These premium oils often come at a higher price. Perhaps you are already feeling the pressure from the market, and looking at other alternatives that could help you save on costs and increase your profitability.

Today, let’s focus on the giant elephant in the room…. the price. Here is how some of the most commonly known healthy non-GMO and organic oils compare.

Expeller Pressed vs. Non-GMO: these two traits are interrelated and a common point of discussion. Is expeller pressed oil automatically non-GMO? Is all non-GMO automatically expeller pressed? To help with a bit of the confusion we will break down some helpful information to find out truly whether or not it your oil is just expeller pressed or non-GMO — and what the difference really is.

How is organic extra virgin olive oil different than each of the other grades of olive oil? Today we will explain the difference between organic and regular extra virgin olive oil, as well as the difference between organic extra virgin and some of the other olive oil grades like Pure, Refined and Pomace.

We talk a lot about the different grades of olive oil: how they’re made, what they’re used for. But, it’s been a while since we talked about Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil in particular. Sometimes, organic EVOO seems so straight forward that it’s easy to glance over.

This week, I’d like to bring it back to this classic, premium (and my personal favorite) oil. Here’s some basics about Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil that you should know.

Is there such a thing as “light” olive oil? To answer this question, you have to start with defining which type of “light” you are referring to.

Olive oil described as “light” does not mean that it is a low fat oil. What makes it a “light” oil is actually the particular grade of oil: “Extra Light Olive Oil”, “Light-Tasting Olive Oil”, “Extra Lite Tasting Olive Oil”. All of those terms refer to the type of oil inside, not that it is low fat.