Seven Olive Oils "Good", Some Even Fail

Since 2020, the price of olive oil has risen by 98.6 %. What consumers paid 5 € for a bottle of olive oil four years ago is now often 10 €. However, the rising price does not lead to rising quality – on the contrary, as Stiftung Warentest found in its comparison of 25 olive oils.

3 Oils Failed and Contain Harmful Contaminants

The oils that received a “poor” rating were oils from the brands Fiore, dmBio, and La Española. They tasted rancid and muddy, and according to the testers, they should not have been sold as "extra virgin" olive oils in the highest quality class.

Additionally, components were found in these products that must have accidentally entered during production. "There was no oil in the test that was free of contaminants, but some were significantly contaminated with mineral oil hydrocarbons," says Swantje Waterstraat from Stiftung Warentest. These mineral oil hydrocarbons are considered potentially carcinogenic.

7 Oils Rated "Good"

The test winner with a rating of 2.1 is the Beste Wahl Olive Oil from Rewe, which currently costs just under 16 euros per liter. Other oils rated as "good" come from Aldi, Edeka, Lidl, and Bertolli.
There are only significant differences in price between the “good” olive oils. The most expensive is the olive oil from Edeka, while the price recommendation this year goes to Aldi’s Cantinelle oil. According to Aldi, this is currently sold under the Bellasan brand.

Price Developments of Olive Oil

The sharp rise in olive oil prices was mainly due to a poor harvest year. Particularly in Spain, there were recurring droughts and hot weather in 2024. However, the 2025 harvest is forecast to increase by 30 %, which raises hopes for a soon-to-come drop in prices.