“Acesur to withdraw La Andaluza brand from supermarkets due to controversy over mixture of vegetable fats”

The oil bottling company Acesur has announced that it will withdraw its La Andaluza brand of olive and sunflower oil from supermarkets. The products of this brand were a mixture of both vegetable fats, a practice that is not allowed in Spain, but it is in other neighboring countries. In fact, La Andaluza made the mix in Portugal from where it was later imported into our country. This system is legal, but some entities have turned against it.

Specifically, the Union of Small Farmers and Ranchers (UPA) has denounced that the brand is “misleading” and that considered that this sale was aimed at lowering the price and attracting consumers. Olive oil is one of the foods that has risen the most in price in recent months and its sales are decreasing. In fact, in the first two months of 2023, almost 18% less olive oil has been sold than in the same period of 2022, as this article from EL ESPAÑOL Invertia explains.

However, UPA denounced that this strategy to increase sales jeopardizes the good name and prestige of olive oil and that that of the La Andaluza brand has been sold for months in supermarkets belonging to the Eroski, Alcampo and Más supermarkets. The organization has also stated that the practice of mixing sunflower and olive oils should be prohibited throughout the European Union because it attacks the quality of this product.

[Este es el aceite del ‘súper’ tan sano como el de oliva pero mucho más barato según el CSIC]

“What happened in this case should be a warning to sailors to avoid practices that could lead to fraud and deception. Olive oil must be a product that is protected and pampered by everyone”, they have said from UPA. In addition, in this case UPA maintains that in the intentions of carrying out this blend “it has been possible to receive pressure from the distribution, given the price at origin that olive oil is having at the moment.”

For this reason, before buying olive oil it is important to check its labeling to know what we are taking home. Olive oil is considered a healthy fat that prevents cardiovascular diseases, but also in a technical way that is considered a high quality product. This is because it resists high cooking temperatures without compromising its structure and its antioxidant components. In this way, when sautéing foods with it, its properties are maintained.

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