Government suspends marketing of 24 brands of olive oil in six states

The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) announced, on Thursday (16), the suspension of the sale of 24 brands of olive oil due to irregularities in the product that was taken to supermarkets.

During the operation of the Map, they were seized 151,449 bottles of olive oil in the states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Ceará, Goiás, Paraná and Santa Catarina.

The federal government reported that it had found three clandestine factories that were filling oils. The product was actually a mixture of vegetable oils of unknown origin.

According to the statement, the registration of a factory in the interior of São Paulo was also suspended, “after the verification of adulteration in the manufacture of its products during the year 2021”.

The most common fraud in the manufacture of olive oil is the mixing of soy oil with artificial colors and flavors. In addition, cases where refined olive oil is sold as extra virgin oil are also recorded.

“Consumers should not buy the oils from these brands advertised by Mapa. There is also a warning for supermarkets, as the place that has one of these products on display for sale will be responsible for the irregularity and will respond to the Ministry with fines that can reach R$ 532 thousand reais”, said the director of the Department of Inspection of Products Vegetal Origin, Glauco Bertoldo.

Olive oil is the second most defrauded food product in the world, second only to fish, according to Mapa. The products mentioned in the published list were consumed throughout Brazil.

List of irregular brands intercepted in the market in 2021:

• Alcazar
• Alentejano
• Anna
• Barcelona
• Barcelona stained glass
• Castle of the Moors
• Real crown
• from the olive
• Del toro
• from the boss
• Epic
• farm estate
• Figueira do Foz
• island of Madeira
• Monsanto
• Monte Ruivo
• Porto Galo
• Porto Real
• Quinta da Beira
• Quinta da Regaleira
• Galicia Tower
• Tradition
• Brazilian Tradition
• Old valley

THE CNN Brasil Business tried to get in touch with all the brands mentioned in the communiqué from the federal government.

Valle Viejo replied that “the note given by Anvisa has to be ratified, our lawyers are already taking the appropriate measures, as the note was referring to a counterfeit cargo seizure, with a similar name to ours, it is not our product ”.

The other brands listed did not return a placement request or were not contactable.

Aiming to alert consumers of olive oil in Brazil, the Map states that some precautions must be taken when choosing products.

According to the Ministry, one should always be suspicious of the price if the item is cheaper than usual, check the list of irregular products already seized in actions on the Map and pay attention to the characteristics of the packaging – the product must be dark.

It is also recommended to prefer products with the most recent filling date.