Portuguese olive oil

Olive oil types and kinds

Olive oil is obtained by means of extracting the oil from the fruits of the olive plant. In Portugal, olive oil groves are grown in many farms alongside the vines. In course of time, olive oil has emerged as a premier crop and today is also exported in foreign markets. Having a variety of advantageous uses, like in reducing the chances of heart diseases etc. olive oil has an edge over the other kinds of vegetable oils. Portugal also facilitates olive production because of its Mediterranean climate which is conducive to the growth of the crop.

The European union account for about 93% of the world’s olive oil production with the countries of Spain, Greece, turkey, Italy ruling the production. Portugal too has slowly emerged as one the contributors in the world market and there are different gradations given to the kinds of oil gathered from the olive plant. The olive oil extracted from the olive plant can be sub divided into three major kinds on the basis of the kinds of oils obtained. These are refined oils, virgin oil and pomace olive oil.

Those oils which have been exposed to chemical reactions in order to deactivate the acid or free fatty acid content and strong tastes or defects are known as refine olive oils. The term virgin refers to something pure and unadulterated. Virgin olive oils are those which have been produced by means of physical and natural processes without any kind of exposure to chemical processes or mechanization. Because of its contact with chemical processes, refined oils can never attain the pure and unblemished status that the virgin olive oil occupies. Pomace olive oil is another kind which is obtained from pomace by means of using heat and chemical solvents like hexane. In the Mediterranean climates of Portugal, these are the olive oil varieties grown.