Cold pressed olive oil

Cold-pressed olive oil is one of the most common quality terms found on olive oil bottles. It signals low temperature during extraction, which can help preserve flavor, aroma, and delicate compounds.

However, the term is often used loosely. For premium oil, the important question is not just whether the oil is cold-pressed, but how quickly the olives were pressed, what raw material was used, and whether the quality can be documented.

What does cold-pressed mean?

Within the EU, terms such as cold-pressed and cold extraction may be used when the oil has been produced at a maximum of 27 °C. The temperature limit is important because heat can affect the oil's volatile aromatic compounds and phenolic profile.

Historically, cold-pressed referred to traditional pressing with mechanical presses. In modern mills, centrifugation is often used, and in that case, "cold extraction" is a more precise term.

Today, consumers often use "cold-pressed" as a collective term. This is understandable, but technically, the difference is worth knowing.

Cold-pressed and cold extraction are not the same thing

Cold-pressed describes pressing. Cold extraction describes extraction with modern systems, often centrifugation, where the temperature is kept controlled.

Both terms can be relevant if the temperature requirement is met. But they do not in themselves indicate that the oil is high-polyphenolic, fresh, or sensorially good.

That's why Vala Selection prefers to talk about the entire chain: early harvest, quick transport to the mill, low temperature, traceable batch, and analysis.

Why 27 °C matters

Low temperature helps preserve the oil's natural expression. Aromatic compounds, bitterness, pungency, and phenolic compounds are affected by how the olives are handled during milling and extraction.

Too high a temperature can lead to higher oil yield, but risks degrading the oil's finer sensory properties. In premium production, the goal is therefore not maximum volume, but maximum quality in the finished oil.

Low temperature is thus a sign of quality, but not proof in itself.

What happens before pressing is just as important

Cold extraction cannot save poor raw material. If the olives are overripe, damaged, or left for too long after harvest, oxidation and degradation begin even before they reach the mill.

Therefore, the time between harvest and pressing is central. The shorter the time, the better the conditions for fresh taste, low defect risk, and preserved phenolic structure.

For Vala Selection, the goal is for the olives to reach the mill within 24 hours. This is a practical quality principle, not just a marketing term.

Is "cold-pressed" sufficient to assess quality?

No. Cold-pressed or cold extraction is an important part of the process, but real quality requires more answers.

Pay particular attention to:

• whether the oil is extra virgin olive oil
• how quickly the olives were pressed after harvest
• whether the oil has clear fruitiness and no defects
• whether the polyphenol content is documented
• whether the analysis is linked to the batch
• how the oil is stored and bottled

A low temperature without good raw material does not produce a great oil. A good extra virgin olive oil is built on the entire chain.

The link to polyphenols

Polyphenols are sensitive to raw material, harvest time, oxygen, temperature, and time. Low temperature can help preserve them, but it alone does not create a high polyphenol content.

For high-polyphenolic olive oil, early harvest, healthy olives, rapid pressing, and gentle handling are often required. Analysis with HPLC makes it possible to verify the level in a specific batch.

This is also why a term like "cold-pressed" should be seen as a process detail, while polyphenol content and HPLC are documentation.

How Vala Selection works

Vala Selection CORE and PRE-HARVEST are based on cold extraction at low temperatures, but this is only part of the quality model. Origin, varietal selection, early harvest, short time to mill, and batch-level analysis are at least as important.

For the customer, this means that "cold-pressed" should not stand alone. It should be backed up by taste, traceability, and data.

More information

About the quality grade: extra virgin olive oil.

About measurement: HPLC analysis of olive oil.

About polyphenols: polyphenols in olive oil.

About sensory analysis: taste and quality in olive oil.

Sources: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2104. IOC Trade Standard COI/T.15/NC No 3/Rev. 16.