Our Summary
Avocado oil has become one of the most sought-after cooking oils due to its perceived health benefits, and food manufacturers have responded by marketing a wide range of chips, mayonnaise, and salad dressings as made with avocado oil, often at a notable price premium. This 2026 study by UC Davis researchers, published in Applied Food Research, set out to test whether the avocado oil and olive oil claims on commercially processed food labels actually hold up to chemical scrutiny. The researchers purchased and analyzed 74 products labeled as containing avocado oil or olive oil, including chips, mayonnaise, and salad dressings, and evaluated each using established fatty acid and sterol markers that can reliably fingerprint a genuine oil. The results for avocado oil were striking: 89% of avocado oil-labeled products (48 out of 54) had compositional profiles inconsistent with authentic avocado oil, including 93% of chips, 71% of mayonnaise, and 100% of salad dressings in the avocado oil category. Olive oil fared far better, with 90 to 100% of olive oil-labeled products testing as consistent with authentic olive oil across all product types. Importantly, the study found that paying more for a product did not reliably indicate you were getting the oil advertised on the label, meaning price alone cannot protect consumers from mislabeling. The findings have significant implications for both regulators and consumers who choose these products specifically for the nutritional properties of avocado oil.
DOI: 10.1016/j.afres.2026.102389
