Best of Portugal

Portuguese olive oil

According to recent data, 93% of the world’s total olive oil production is provided by the European continent alone with the countries of Italy, Greece, Spain and Turkey being among the foremost producers. In this esteemed list, according to 2005 statistics, positioned eighth in the world is Portugal which accounts for about 2% consumption, 1% production and about 7.1 kg per capita consumption annually. While it is true that Portugal is very famous worldwide for its wines and vineyards, olive oil too has been emerging slowly as one of the leading cash crops and in some parts of Portugal, olive oil groves are located in close proximity to vineyards. Some of the prominent olive growing regions of Portugal include the hills of the Moura region, the Norte Alentjano, the upper Douro and the Tras-os-Montes in the northern part of Portugal. Olive oil is obtained by means of extraction from the olive fruit and in Portugal the olive oil is of very strong quality, totally ripe and golden. It has been revealed by researchers that among the different vegetable oils that are available today, olive oil is most beneficial as it has various merits and almost no negative effects. This is because olive oil contains huge proportions of polyphenols and monounsaturated fats, notably oleic acid and these are very healthy. Not only do they function for cooking purposes, in cosmetics and soaps, as fuel for lighting oil lamps, it serves several medicinal purposes and is helpful in countering coronary heart diseases. It is also one of the prominent among the gourmet of Portugal.

In Portugal, the Mediterranean type climate facilitates olive production and the beneficial properties of olive oil have resulted in increased domestic consumption as well as exports as well. To improve olive production, specific DOPs or designation of origin systems have been formed. Moreover, novel modes of cultivation including newer mechanized techniques have been implemented in olive oil cultivation to enable refined quality production.