rotuts, I understand you can't buy 'local' olive oil (as in you can see the olive grove from your house) but you can buy olive oil that is produced in the US. At least if US growers/producers begin messing with their oils, there is a possibility (especially with small 'local' producers) that some recourse from public outcry could directly influence their sales drastically. A little hard to be heard in Greece or Italy or Spain or Portugal from across the Atlantic - and have any real impact (especially when governments are, these days, often involved as much as producers).
And Shel_B also makes a good point - just because the label says something doesn't mean that the bottle actually contains what is advertised. There is little real regulation or, more to the point, oversight in this arena. As a consumer, once burned, many times shy is my mantra. If I taste a particular olive oil from, for instance, at a major food show/venue - and it comes from a small US company, I will trust it for now. If I ever get an inkling that their oils have deteriorated or that they may be engaging in underhanded 'cutting' practices, they will never get my business again - and, if, as I suspect, I am not alone, that will supremely hurt their bottom line.
I really read labels these days too. I often see 'packed for' or 'produced for' and it is often difficult or impossible to determine the country of origin on bottles, cans, boxes. I won't buy those any more if I cannot readily and quickly identify the source and I trust that source. Western governments are now making it difficult to tell where a product or ingredient in a product was sourced - usually because they signed trade deals that no longer allow them to demand those things. I think the only way we will 'know' what we are getting is to 'know the producer' so we can trust them - and buy mostly if possible from small companies that we are sure produce their own ingredients or buy them from local farmers, etc.
