Stiftung Warentest examined olive oils. Not many products performed well. © Christin Klose/dpa
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Whether as a base for frying, as a salad dressing or simply for dipping: there are a variety of uses for olive oil in the kitchen. Stiftung Warentest tested olive oil – with a rather sobering result: Only four oils received a grade of “good”, six even failed with a rating of “poor”.
The test included a total of 23 olive oils, four of which were specifically for frying. They were not only tested for their sensory properties (taste, smell, appearance), but also for their chemical quality and the pollutants they contain, among other things.
Olive oil at Stiftung Warentest: This is the test winner
Stiftung Warentest named the olive oil “Caieta Olio extra vergine di oliva” from “Cosmo di Russo” as the clear test winner, which performed best with a grade of 1.7 (good). The oil impressed the testers above all with its sensory properties and received a straight A for this area. But this quality has its price: the olive oil costs 46 euros per liter – which is significantly more than the three other products rated “good” (one extra virgin olive oil, two frying oils).
If you don’t have to dig deep into your pockets but still want decent quality, you should say “Yes!” according to the test results. Grab extra virgin olive oil from Rewe. At 10.70 euros per liter, it is one of the cheapest oils tested and performed reasonably well with a grade of 2.6 (satisfactory).
Stiftung Warentest: Bad grade for olive oil from Edeka and Kaufland
However, three olive oils from the own brands of well-known supermarkets failed the Stiftung Warentest test. The “Gut & Günstig extra virgin olive oil” from Edeka as well as the “K-Bio extra virgin olive oil” and the “K-Classic virgin olive oil” from Kaufland were graded 5.0 (poor). The testers criticized the “rancid” taste of all three oils. In addition, they should not have been called “extra virgin” due to sensory defects.
There are many uses for olive oil: Some people, for example, like to eat it plain with bread.© Lorenzo Carnero/dpa/ZUMA Wire
Stiftung Warentest, which recently discovered harmful substances in many fish fingers, most recently examined olive oils in 2022. The overall result this time is significantly worse. While two years ago two thirds of the products tested were rated “good”, in the new test there are only four.
Does climate change affect olive oil quality?
Stiftung Warentest also attributes the poorer quality of the oils to the effects of climate change. Extreme heat, lack of water or storms: all of these influence the harvest in the olive groves. “For the first time we have the impression that the climate crisis is reflected in a food test,” explains food chemist and test manager Jochen Wettach.
The quality fell, but the price of olive oil has risen significantly in recent years: According to the Federal Statistical Office, consumers paid over 70 percent more at the end of 2023 than in 2021. The price for olive oil from discounters has even almost doubled in some cases, writes the Foundation Product test.