We're very sorry to hear that you didn't enjoy your experience of the Olive Oil Club, Robert.
Our range of speciality EVOOs are available to purchase in glass bottles. We also have a ceramic which has been created in a region near our olive groves in Portugal by a third-generation producer.
The Club subscription which you received is a different offering with a monthly delivery of a letterbox-friendly 500ml pouch. The basis of the subscription is a discovery membership that showcases a wide number of growers, olive varietals and flavour profiles.
Our environmental impact is important to us. Our glass bottles produce 15x more carbon than our pouches (not even factoring in the extra packing glass needs for transport), as well as being more difficult and expensive to ship.
Finding the right packaging has been one of the most challenging parts of our journey, as we take the quality of our olive oil extremely seriously. The pouch (or bag-in-box) format is widely recommended across the olive oil industry as it’s had extensive testing around the quality and safety—much like has been done in the wine and even baby food industry.
For those who are looking for a more aesthetic option, we encourage Club members to decant their oil into one of our EVOO bottles or something like our ceramic. We then encourage our Club members to return their refillable pouches to use so we can recycle them through TerraCycle, where they are then turned into further products.
We realise it’s a tough one if you don’t like the format, but we appreciate the feedback as we’re always working to improve the experience and balance between sustainability, value, and presentation of the oils which our artisan producers work so hard to create each year.
Also, a note on clear bottles: extra virgin olive oil is extremely sensitive to light so we’d recommend you only purchase in a format that keeps out the light, or keep that closed in the box at all times (even in your pantry) to maintain the quality.
