Expert: Jim Gawley - 11/13/2008

Question
I just took a job with a company that imports olive oil from 5 different countries. Even though we keep documentation about which country that particular batch came from, it would make our lives much easier if we can put a generic statement of the label, “Product of Italy, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, or Argentina.” Currently, we print a code a different country of origin each time. Can you advise about the acceptability or refer me to a source of information? Thanks!!

Answer
Mike,

You may be able to find the information from FDA http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/label.html

OR try The Association of Food Industries http://afi.mytradeassociation.org/

They specialize in helping importers and deal with a lot of Olive Oil issues.

Regards,
Jim