You can technically eat olives straight off the tree, but they are intensely bitter and generally considered inedible due to a compound called oleuropein[1][2][3][4][5][6].
The bitterness is so strong that most people find fresh olives unpleasant to eat. Unlike many other tree fruits, olives must be cured—through methods like brining, dry salting, or lye treatment—to remove the bitter compounds and make them palatable[1][2][3][4][5].
If you do try an olive straight from the branch, it won’t harm you, but the taste will likely be “terrible”[6]. All varieties, regardless of their type or ripeness, require processing before they’re enjoyable to eat[1][2][3][4].
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