While eating in a restaurant this week, my boyfriend and I were musing over the medallions printed at the bottom of this container of olive oil. Apparently, a true “Extra Virgin Olive Oil” certification in Italy is a highly prestigious distinction governed by rigorous testing. This certification system gives genuine “Extra Virgin” olive oils a certain exclusivity that strengthens the desirability of this already exotic product. In fact, it seems that some manufacturers have exploited the high demand of olive oil by producing “fake” ones, or ones that have been tainted by mixing it with lower grade oils, which caused quite a scandal in 2008.
