How to pull off a million-dollar olive oil heist
Daniel Renaud outlines how organized crooks pulled off a million‑dollar olive oil heist when a shipment vanished between Montreal and Toronto.
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Nicholas 15:36 on 2025-02-08 Permalink
I saw recently that olive oil is the food product with the highest inflation over the last few years, apparently due to severe droughts in Spain, among other issues. Prices really have doubled in like 2 years. This won’t help, but it’s interesting this kind of shipment doesn’t even have a basic tracker.
Kate 15:58 on 2025-02-08 Permalink
Not surprising. I used to get Tunisian olive oil for 11.99 a litre, and now it’s 18.99 in the same store. Liquid gold!
If the owners of that shipment cheaped out by not tracking it, they were silly. But assigning blame in stories like this is impossible on the amount of data given in a brief news piece.
Blork 16:18 on 2025-02-08 Permalink
Olive oil also has a high level of fraud in terms of labelling of type and origin. Much of that “100% Italian olive oil” you’re paying a premium price for is cut with oils from other countries, and even different types of oils. The fancier the oil, the more likely it has been “tweaked” like this, including adding chlorophyll to make it smell and taste “grassy.” And of course the higher the price goes, the more fraud you get.
Don’t even get me started on San Marzano tomatoes!
Roman 16:19 on 2025-02-08 Permalink
Just an FYI if you are paying $19/L you aren’t getting olive oil. Even in the EU, the source of the oil, and the most regulated place on earth, there a massive crisis of fake oil. EU called it an epidemic and it’s the most faked product at the moment. I’ve asked local experts and was told that the price for good quality oil is 20€/750mL. ($30 CAD).
Kate 17:43 on 2025-02-08 Permalink
So is there any truth to the theory that if the ambient temperature goes below about 15° and the oil gets semi solid, that it’s a test for true olive oil?
Ian 18:57 on 2025-02-09 Permalink
No, that’s actually a good storing temperature for olive oil. It will congeal at lower temperatures but that’s not really a test per se. In reality you can only tell by flavour and consistency – and most people can’t really tell a real first cold press anyway.
I get my oil from a local Greek guy, those Cretans know from the good stuff.