When the North American Olive Oil Association (NAOIA) was formed in 1974, it began as a lobby group to protect the rights of farmers and oil farmers. However in the past decade they have been very successful in convincing the government and the courts that they deserve compensation for the damage that they have caused the larger food processing industry. During this time they have spent millions of dollars on many frivolous lawsuits and have even used their ties to the government to get people to donate to their cause. This all seems to be for nothing really other than an attempt to intimidate the smaller, more reputable processors out of the marketplace. Unfortunately, what often happens is that the larger less profitable processor’s simply out-maneuver the bigger more successful one and that means that consumers end up getting the short end of the stick when it comes to quality control standards.
There are many different issues that the North American Olive Oil Association has been involved in.
One of the most important is their constant attempts to regulate the use of “extra virgin” oil in the domestic production of olive oil. Extra virgin oil is produced in countries such as the Dominican Republic, where it is harvested by hand and then pressed and tested in another country, never receiving any attention from the North American industry. Another issue is the fact that the major manufacturers of olive oil are exempt from paying the required tariffs under the NAOIA act. Tariffs are designed to level the playing field between the larger and smaller importers and processors, allowing the domestically grown product to be distributed to the retailers without any additional costs. Many small, family owned, and locally owned businesses would be bankrupt if they were not protected by tariffs.
As a result of their own membership in the oil association the North American olive oil association has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a few lawsuits aimed at convincing the courts that they cannot sue for compensation because the regulations in the US do not allow them to do so.
The regulations that the association has tried to get put into place include a requirement that all extra virgin oil is imported from the affected nations. Many other rules regulating the amount of oils that can be imported have also been rejected. These rules have been changed to allow only about one percent of the oil from these nations. For the association and many of its members this is unacceptable and they feel as though justice has not been served.
In the face of all of this resistance the olive oil producers and importers have decided to go on an offensive.
They have hired large law firms to represent them in court. Large corporate corporations know that they cannot be sued for personal injuries unless they can afford to lose millions of dollars in damages. As a result, they have resorted to hiring law firms to represent them in these suits and attempting to get them to reach verdicts that will allow them to keep manufacturing olive oil in the United States. This is not a way that small individual farmers or families who are suffering economically should be treated.
The North American Olive Oil Association lawsuit is part of a much larger fight that is being fought by many groups against the use of genetically modified organisms in food and agriculture.
These suits are being funded by large food companies and their lobby groups. The lawsuits and the push to enforce these rules against modified foods are being led by the World Food Program (WFP), an organization that represents the interests of agricultural producers throughout the world. A large portion of the world’s food supply is genetically altered, so many people feel that it is not right that these companies have been given a free pass to poison us with their genetically modified products. Even in the face of this resistance to some of the nations that have embraced the practice have made it clear that they do not want to see the practice discontinued.
If you are looking for a legal source for your olive oil needs you should take a close look at the Olive Oil Association lawsuit.
This is just one example of the attempts that many groups are making to put the blame on the irresponsible use of olive oil. The reality is that the use of this product has greatly increased over the past decade and most of the blame should be laid squarely on the irresponsible use of these products. In the end we must remember that this is an issue that affects us all, the environment, farmers and even the food that we eat. The best thing we can all do is to work together to make sure that the responsible use of these products is practiced.
