You`re buying fake olive oil, wine, and mozzarella from the Mafia

Back in the day, the mafia ran illegitimate businesses — gambling, drugs, booze — or squeezed people on everyday functions, like trash removal. They still do, surely.

But now you can thank the mob for illegitimizing your favorite foods — namely olive oil, wine, and mozzarella cheese — by selling you counterfeit trash.

On Sunday, “60 Minutes” aired an investigation detailing the new, nefarious food business of the Italian mafia, which brings in an estimated $16 billion per year. Case in point: in December, authorities confiscated 7,000 tons of counterfeit olive oil set for export.

According to the report, the mob often dilutes real-deal olive oil with sunflower or canola oil, scrubbing the cheap stuff with chemicals to mask the taste. And up to a staggering 80% of all extra virgin olive oil sold in the US could fail the standard benchmark it requires. As the Daily Beast reported in November, Italy opened investigations into seven of the country’s largest olive-oil producers for cutting their expensive exports with lesser oils. As the report explains, “extra-virgin has an acidity of no more than 0.8 grams per 100 grams of oil, and it must be made from the first press of the olives,” leading to a significantly higher price. It’s big business, too, as journalist Thomas Mueller told “60 Minutes.”

“The best can sell for $50-a-gallon…but a fake costs just seven dollars to make,” Mueller said. “The profit margin can be three times better than cocaine.”


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