Notes

INGLESE-(OLIVE OIL)
The olive tree is native to the coastal areas or ad
Mediterranean Basin, northern Iraq and Iran at the south of the Caspian Sea. Since ancient times olive trees have been of major agricultural importance in the Mediterranean area. Today they are also cultivated in areas with a temperate climate such as South Africa, Chile,
Australia, California, New Zealand, Japan and China.
The olive tree is cultivated for fine wood, olive leaf, the olive fruit and olive oil.
The olive is a drupe and has a bitter component called oleuropein, a low sugar content compared with other drupes and a high oil content.
Most olive varieties cannot be consumed directly from the tree.
Oleuropein has to be removed as it has a strong bitter taste.
Olives are harvested from mid October to January. The traditional method of picking involves combing the ripe fruit from the tree into nets, or hand picking into baskets tied around the waist. Ladders are used to climb up into the trees to reach the fruit.
-Mechanical pickers, are also used. Olives can be picked using long-handled vibrating tongs to remove the olives from the branches or using a shaker bar fitted to the back of a tractor. This shakes the tree from the trunk. In both cases the olives are collected in nets which have to be spread underneath the trees..
The oil obtained solely from the fruit of the olive tree is called olive oil.
Extra virgin olive oil is the highest quality and most expensive olive oil.
Olive oil has numerous health benefits. The fats contained in olive oil are much healthier than the fats contained in meat and dairy. Olive oil is actually good for maintaining healthy cholesterol levels.