Region in brief: Professor targets olive oil frauds
POCATELLO, Idaho – An Idaho State University chemistry professor and some of his students collected samples of extra virgin olive oil on a trip to Greece and now are working on a simple method to detect counterfeit oil.
John Kalivas says extra virgin olive oil can be diluted with cheaper seed oils such as sunflower oil or corn oil, or mixed with cheaper olive oil, so he’s using information from test samples from extra virgin olive oil obtained in Greece to develop a mathematical model that can be used to determine purity.
Home guides offered for free
BOISE – The Idaho attorney general’s office is aiming to help homeowners and those looking to buy with a pair of new publications, one focused on helping prevent people from falling victim to foreclosure scams and another providing good tips to choosing a house.
The free publications are called “Foreclosure Prevention and Foreclosure Scams: How to Tell the Difference” and “Buying a Home” and are available on the attorney general’s Web site at www.ag.idaho.gov.
The book with foreclosure information is 60 pages and walks people through the realities of efforts to modify distressed mortgages, as well as details of getting federal help to ward off foreclosure.
The 45-page “Buying a Home” is a handbook for those who are interested in moving into their own place – but don’t necessarily know all the facts about how to go about such a move.
The books were put together by Attorney General Lawrence Wasden’s consumer protection division.
Recycling gives old mill new life
SALEM – The Boise Cascade mill in downtown Salem is gone, but most of the materials are being recycled.
Staton Companies, a Eugene-based demolition contractor, has flattened the mill’s buildings to make way for a mixed-use development.
Demolition workers have recovered an estimated $250,000 to $300,000 worth of materials. Ron Richey, a partner at Staton Companies, said that by weight, about 96 percent of the materials from the demolition are being recycled.