hanged its name to Deoleo). The charges involved falsified documents and food fraud. Carapelli lawyer Neri Pinucci said the company was not worried about the charges and that "the case is based on an irregularity in the documents."[46] In February 2012, an alleged international olive oil scam occurred in which palm, avocado, sunflower and other cheaper oils were passed off a

nts and is checked for "sensory defects" that include: rancid, fusty, musty, winey (vinegary) and muddy sediment. These defects can occur for different reasons. The most common are:
Raw material (olives) infected or battered
Inadequate harvest, with contact between the olives and soil [43]
In March 2008, 400 Italian police officers conducted "Operation Golden Oil", arresting 23 people and confiscating 85 farms after an investigation revealed a large-scale scheme to relabel oils from other Mediterranean nations as Italian.[44] In April 2008, another operation impounded seven olive oil plants and arrested 40 people in nine provinces of northern and southern Italy for adding chlorophyll to sunflower and soybean oil, and selling it as extra virgin olive oil, both in Italy and abroad; 25,000 liters of the fake oil were seized and prevented from being exported.[45]
On March 15, 2011, the Florence, Italy prosecutor's office, working in conjunction with the forestry department, indicted two managers and an officer of Carapelli, one of the brands of the Spanish company Grupo SOS (which recently changed its name to Deoleo). The charges involved falsified documents and food fraud. Carapelli lawyer Neri Pinucci said the company was not worried about the charges and that "the case is based on an irregularity in the documents."[46]
In February 2012, an alleged international olive oil scam occurred in which palm, avocado, sunflower and other cheaper oils were passed off as olive oil.[47] Spanish police said the oils were blended in an industrial biodiesel plant and adulterated in a way to hide markers that would have revealed their true nature. The oils were not toxic, however, and posed no health risk, according to a statement by the Guardia Civil. Nineteen people were arrested following the year-long joint probe by the police and Spanish tax authorities, part of what they call Operation Lucerna.[48]
Global consumption[edit]

Greece has by far the largest per capita consumption of olive oil worldwide, over 26 liters per person per year; Spain and Italy, around 14 l; Tunisia, Portugal, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon, around 8 l. Northern Europe and North America consume far less, around 0.7 l, but the consumption of olive oil outside its home territory has been rising steadily.
Global market[edit]
The main producing and consuming countries are:
Country    Production in tons (2010)[20]    Production % (2010)    Consumption (2005)[49]    Annual per capita consumption (kg)[50]
World    3,269,248    100%    100%    0.43
Spain    1,487,000    45.5%    20%    13.62
Italy    548,500    16.8%    30%    12.35
Greece    352,800    10.8%    9%    23.7
Syria    177,400    5.4%    3%    7
Morocco    169,900    5.2%    2%    11.1
Turkey    161,600    4.9%    2%    1.2
Tunisia    160,100    4.9%    2%    5
Portugal    66,600    2.0%    2%    1.8
Algeria    33,600    1.0%    2%    7.1