Olive

The olive (Olea europaea) is one of the oldest cultivated fruit trees, with evidence of olive farming stretching back at least 6,000 years in the eastern Mediterranean. The small oval fruits are too bitter to eat straight from the tree and must be cured or pressed before consumption.

Olives and olive oil are foundational to Mediterranean cuisines and have spread to every temperate and subtropical growing region worldwide. Australia has a growing olive industry, particularly in South Australia, Victoria, and Western Australia, producing both table olives and extra virgin olive oil.

There are hundreds of olive cultivars, each with distinct flavour profiles, oil content, and suitability for either table use or oil production. The fruit’s significance extends well beyond the kitchen — olive trees are cultural symbols of peace, endurance, and prosperity across many societies.

Farmed Source
photograph to come — from twenty years of markets, farms and kitchens

How it's produced

Olive trees are farmed in regions with warm, dry summers and mild winters — the classic Mediterranean climate. Trees are long-lived, often productive for centuries, though commercial orchards are typically replanted after 50 to 100 years. Modern plantations range from traditional wide-spaced groves hand-harvested with rakes and nets to high-density hedgerow systems harvested by machine.

For table olives, fruit is picked at various stages of ripeness (green through to black) and cured using brine, lye, dry salt, or water to remove the bitter compound oleuropein. For oil, olives are harvested when they reach optimal oil content, crushed into a paste, and the oil is separated by centrifuge. Cold-pressed or cold-extracted methods preserve flavour and are labelled as extra virgin when they meet quality standards.

What it costs the planet (per kilo)

Carbon 6kg
Freshwater 2142L
Land 26.3m²

* Based on what it takes to produce, from farm to factory gate.

What comes from this

Olive, fruit (harvested) Olive, product (harvested)
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