Extra Virginity
The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil
Published on 12. January 2012
Book
Hardback
256 pages
978-0-393-07021-7 (ISBN)
Description
For millennia, fresh olive oil has been one of life's necessities-not just as food but also as medicine, a beauty aid, and a vital element of religious ritual. Today's researchers are continuing to confirm the remarkable, life-giving properties of true extra-virgin, and "extra-virgin Italian" has become the highest standard of quality.
But what if this symbol of purity has become deeply corrupt? Starting with an explosive article in The New Yorker, Tom Mueller has become the world's expert on olive oil and olive oil fraud-a story of globalization, deception, and crime in the food industry from ancient times to the present, and a powerful indictment of today's lax protections against fake and even toxic food products in the United States. A rich and deliciously readable narrative, Extra Virginity is also an inspiring account of the artisanal producers, chemical analysts, chefs, and food activists who are defending the extraordinary oils that truly deserve the name "extra-virgin."
But what if this symbol of purity has become deeply corrupt? Starting with an explosive article in The New Yorker, Tom Mueller has become the world's expert on olive oil and olive oil fraud-a story of globalization, deception, and crime in the food industry from ancient times to the present, and a powerful indictment of today's lax protections against fake and even toxic food products in the United States. A rich and deliciously readable narrative, Extra Virginity is also an inspiring account of the artisanal producers, chemical analysts, chefs, and food activists who are defending the extraordinary oils that truly deserve the name "extra-virgin."
Reviews / Votes
"Starred review. Engrossing history, vivid contemporary reporting and a cogent call to action, expertly blended in an illuminating text." "The New Yorker writer does for his subject what Susan Orlean did for orchids." "... [Extra-Virginity] does for olive oil what Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation did for hamburgers. Mueller traces the history of this valuable product from antiquity to the present, but the really disturbing part is his expose of the inferior quality control and outright fraud among today's' oil producers." "How long have readers been waiting for a book like this? A century? A millennium? Finally, the earth's most poetic food has found its storyteller. Essential, smart, and ridiculously overdue." -- Bill Buford, author of HeatMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Illustrations
25 black-and-white illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 244 mm
Width: 165 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
532 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-393-07021-7 (9780393070217)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
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04/2013
WW Norton & Co
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04/2013
W. W. Norton & Company
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Person
Tom Mueller's writing has appeared in The New Yorker, National Geographic, New York Times Magazine, and Atlantic. He is the author of the New York Times best-selling Extra Virginity about food fraud, and Crisis of Conscience on whistleblowers and their enemies.