18/08/2026
When people hear that an olive oil has “low acidity”, it's easy to assume this means it tastes less acidic or sour. It doesn't.
Free fatty acidity is a laboratory measurement that tells us something about the condition of the olives and how they were handled before and during production. For extra virgin olive oil, the legal limit is 0.8%.
But acidity isn't a flavour measurement. You cannot taste free fatty acidity.
It's one piece of the quality puzzle, which is why professional assessment and laboratory analysis both matter.
Learn more olive oil terminology in our glossary at opuslivewell.com.