Nancy Mehlert, MS

I have been wondering how long it would take for this news break, and to be honest, I am not surprised at all.  Over this last decade, much has been documented about the fact that most olive oils, are not in fact, pure, fresh pressed, unadulterated oil.  In light of that, it is no surprise that the same has been stated now about avocado oil. 

According to Dr. Mercola[i], and based on a study completed in October of this year published by the journal Food Control (116:107328) a number of similar concerns about olive oil are also true about avocado oil:

• 22 avocado oil brands were evaluated, 82% of which were found to be rancid, and 3 of which had no avocado oil in them but were mostly soybean oil instead.
• Countries of origin were California, Mexico, Brazil, and Spain

As with many plant oils, the reasons for concern center around the quality of the source of the oil.  If the avocados used are bruised, overripe, and insect infected, they will not render a quality, fresh and pure oil.  Additionally, oil deteriorates with time by becoming oxidized, so if the time between harvest and  processing is too long, then an oxidized oil will be the outcome.  Finally, and importantly, most oil extraction methods, which are fast and cheap, are accomplished through high heat processing, resulting in damage to these delicate, mono-unsaturated fats. Molecular damage means your body cannot make good use of the nutrient source and it becomes an interfering toxicant or “trash” that must be cleared from the body.

For the time being, I have been able to confirm with Primal Kitchen that their olive and avocado oils are pure, with no other oils added, and have been tested for high quality and purity numerous times throughout every phase of production. Our books and dietary instructions include how to choose a good olive oil. Until then, the best way to benefit from the incredible nutrition in an avocado is to eat the real whole fruit. It remains one of the healthiest foods in the world!

[i] https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2020/07/08/fake-avocado-oil.aspx