California · Health and Safety Code - HSC

HSC §112895: (a) It is unlawful to manufacture, sell, offer for sale, give away, or to possess imitation olive oil in California.

Civil

What this law says, in plain English

California prohibits manufacturing, selling, or possessing imitation olive oil, and requires olive oil labeled as California-sourced to meet specific sourcing, labeling, and quality standards.

Read the full statutory text
(a) It is unlawful to manufacture, sell, offer for sale, give away, or to possess imitation olive oil in California. (b) This section does not prohibit the blending of olive oil with other edible oils, if the blend is not labeled as olive oil or imitation olive oil, is clearly labeled as a blended vegetable oil, and if the contents and proportions of the blend are prominently displayed on the container’s label, or if the oil is a flavored olive oil. (c) If any olive oil is produced, processed, sold, offered for sale, given away, or possessed in California, that indicates on its label “California Olive Oil,” or uses words of similar import that indicate that California is the source of the oil, 100 percent of that oil shall be derived from olives grown in California. (d) Any container of olive oil produced, processed, sold, offered for sale, given away, or possessed in California which contains olive oil produced from olives grown in locations other than California, in whole or in part, and includes “California” in any form on the principal display panel shall state on the same panel the minimum percentage of olive oil in the container produced from olives grown in California in a font size that is no less than the largest font used to print “California” on the same panel. The percentage shall be declared by the words, “___percent (or ____%) California” or “____ percent (or ____%) California olive oil.” This subdivision shall not apply to a container of olive oil produced on or before December 31, 2021. (e) Any olive oil produced, processed, sold, offered for sale, given away, or possessed in California with a principal display panel that uses “California” or any reference to it shall comply with the quality and purity standards set forth in the “Grade and Labeling Standards for Olive Oil, Refined-Olive Oil, and Olive-Pomace Oil” published by the Department of Food and Agriculture. (f) Olive oil produced, processed, sold, offered for sale, given away, or possessed in California, that indicates on its label that it is from a specific region of California shall be made of oil at least 85 percent of which, by weight, is derived from olives grown in the specified region. (g) This section does not prohibit an olive oil producer or processor from using a truthful, nonmisleading statement or representation regarding the geographic origin of the olives used in the production of the olive oil in any label, packaging material, or advertising if the label, packaging material, or advertising contains no representation that is prohibited by this section. (h) Olive oil produced, processed, sold, offered for sale, given away, or possessed in California, that indicates on its label that it is from a specific estate in California shall be made of oil at least 95 percent of which, by weight, is derived from olives grown on the specified estate. (i) Olive-pomace oil shall not be labeled as olive oil.

Verify at the official source: California legislative text

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