Olive harvest season in Spain

In September Spain traditionally begins harvesting of table olives. Harvest will last until November and will end by the olive festival. Olives is the pearl of the Mediterranean. In Russia the olives from the sunny Spain are very popular and are appreciated for its good taste. Due to the wide diversity of varieties and flavors Spanish olives can satisfy even the most inveterate gourmet.

Unique Spanish climatic conditions allow growing the widest range of table olives that have no analogues in the world. The best-known varieties of the Spanish table olives are caserena, manzanilla, gordales and hojiblanca
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About 300 million olive trees are cultivated in Spain. One of the most popular varieties of green olives is manzanilla, which has a distinctive and rich taste. It is ideal for stuffing. In turn, the most famous variety of the black olives is caserena - soft olives with easy detachable stone, rich flavor. They are not stuffed, but served separately or added to the dishes to give them a refined taste.

Olives are grown throughout Spain, but there are two major areas of olive industry: Andalusia and Extremadura. These two regions produce more than 98% of olives in Spain.

Olives are harvested using a combination of cutting-edge technology and centuries-old traditions. There are several ways to collect olives: completely by hand (applied for small trees) and using sticks and special devices for shaking the olive branches to make the fruits fall. The use of special machines can greatly accelerate the process of collecting and allows processing a greater number of trees.

Due to the wide variety of flavors and varieties Spanish olives will please any consumer. They are also a great product for those, who care about their health. Olives include many vitamins and other micronutrients, which are very useful for the human body. First of all, the olives are made up of monounsaturated fat acids, which can significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The most important component of olives is oleic acid, which helps to reduce blood cholesterol levels, assists in strengthening the immune system and even prevents breast cancer. Olives are also rich in vitamin E, which is a natural antioxidant. This vitamin helps us to reduce the risk of cell damage by free radicals. In addition, olives are rich in other substances such as polyphenols or flavonoids that are known for their anti-inflammatory effects and include cellulose, calcium, iron and potassium.

In addition, olive is a low-calorie product. It is amazing that 25g of olives contain only 37 calories! In Spain, for example, virtually any meal is not complete without traditional olives. In this case olives can be used in a variety of dishes from salads and first courses to the second courses and even desserts.