The information that may appear on the labels of extra virgin olive oil is as follows:
- Information required by regulation
- Optional information regulated by regulations, i.e. if an oil meets certain additional requirements, the packer can include them.
- Additional non-regulated information
Mandatory information:
- Category and definition: The category would be «Extra virgin olive oil»and the definition «superior category olive oil obtained directly from olives and only by mechanical processes».»
- Preferred consumption: The oil does not have an expiry date and therefore preferential consumption is indicated at the discretion of the bottler. It is usually indicated between one and a half and two years from the date of bottling and not from the harvesting of the olives.
- Origin of the oil: The country of origin of the olive crop from which the oil is produced must be indicated.
- Name and health registration of the packer
- Net content and batch
Optional information:
- First cold pressing: The packer can label his oil with this information if the oil has been obtained at less than 27 ºC, through a first mechanical pressing of the olive paste, thanks to a traditional extraction system with hydraulic presses.
- Cold extraction: As above, if it has been obtained at less than 27 ºC, by extraction or centrifugation of the olive paste.
- The indication of acidity or maximum acidity: It may appear if it is accompanied by the parameters of peroxide value, wax content and ultraviolet absorbance (K270, K232 and ΔK)
- Organoleptic indications: They may only be listed if they are based on the results of one of the methods of analysis of Regulation (EEC) 2568/91, i.e. as a result of a tasting carried out by an official tasting panel.
Additional information not regulated:
- The packer may include such certain information as he considers relevant, for example:
- Harvest Indication: Year of the olive harvesting season, date of beginning and end of olive harvesting.
- Indication of the variety of olives from which the oil has been produced and whether it is single variety or coupage.
- Indication of the harvest, stating that the oil produced comes from own harvesting
- Other indications: Oils from centenary olive trees, from rainfed olive trees, unfiltered oil, from organic farming, etc.
