We obtain them by eliminating the bitter taste of olives.

Olive fruit is not a fruit that is plucked from its branch and eaten due to its low sugar, high fat, and the substance called oleuropein.

The olive fruit that has become edible after various processes is what we call a table olive.

The primary purpose of obtaining table olives is to eliminate the bitter taste of olives due to the oleuropean substance.

After choosing one of the bitterness removal techniques like crushing, scratching, and confitting, the adventure of turning the olive fruit into table olives begins.

It is the part that determines the naturalness of the olive.

When this bitterness removal process is done with water or taken directly into brine or salt fermentation without pre-treatment, the olive does not lose its naturalness.

However, talking about the naturalness of olives is not possible when they are pre-treated with sodium hydroxide, the type of chemical we know as caustic.

Fermentation of Olive Fruit

It is a sort of chemical process in which the natural sugar of the olive fruit is converted into lactic acid by bacteria and yeasts. But don’t let the word chemical mislead you. This process describes a biochemical change like fermenting yogurt or making pickles.

Thanks to fermentation, oleuropein, which gives olives their bitterness, is broken down, and the sugar in the olive fruit is released and mixed into the brine. In this way, olives become edible.

Natural fermentation takes place for up to 6 months. Some companies prefer chemical fermentation to shorten this period.

The factors that determine the fermentation process of olives are the amount of microorganisms in the environment, the sugar content of the olive, and environmental conditions.

While these have a direct effect on whether the duration is long or short, they do not cause any harm to your health.