Many people think that olive oil is like wine, it improves the more years it remains in a cellar. However, the attainment of time causes a reverse effect on the oil. It does not have an expiry date but it does lose its qualities with the passage of time.

Useful life of olive oil

In order to know whether or not it is appropriate to consume an oil after a certain period of time, one has to take into account its nature and qualities.
Its useful life depends on several factors such as:

• Amount of antioxidants and polyphenols that make up the oil and its oleic acid content as these properties allow the olive oil to remain in good condition for longer.
• Type of oil, for example extra virgin olive oil is olive juice and generally will have more stability than olive oil, lasting between 1 or 2 years, also must be differentiated from those that come from seeds such as sunflower or soybeans, have undergone an industrial process and have standard parameters.
• Variety of olive, zone in which it is cultivated, type of elaboration and packed, conditions of the fruit at the time of being harvested…: the Picual variety usually has more stability than the arbequina variety since they have more content of oleic acid, having up to 2 years of preferential consumption.
• The oil influences the filtrate, which consists of eliminating the water included in the oil, deteriorating more quickly that which is not filtered by contact with the water, having the olive oil a duration of 3 to 6 months without filtering and aove can last between 6 to 12 months, unlike the filtered which last around 1 or 2 years.
  In addition to the properties and components of the oil, there is a fundamental factor that consumers take care of, which is the preservation of the oil:
• Keep the oil in dark glass containers as well as in places where it is not in contact with light.
• The temperature should be between 18-19 ºC and not subject to major changes.
• Make sure that the oil does not come into contact with air.

Recommendations

All the oils must have the date of preferential consumption, which does not mean that the product has expired and cannot be consumed, but that its qualities are no longer conserved in their totality. That is to say, the oil can be consumed without any problem after the time of “preferential consumption” but its sensory attributes are diminishing, the aroma, color and flavor can vary so it is recommended not to consume the oil long after the date of preferential consumption. It is very important for the consumer to look at when this oil was made as well as the best before date in the batches attached to each bottle of oil and follow the instructions for storing the oil.

In the Aceite Oliva Online shop you will find out that all the oils carry the labels that include the dates of production, origin, method of conservation and preferential consumption of the products.